The Prosecutor General’s Office (PGO) has decided to appeal Mahloof’s case at the High Court after the Criminal Court dismissed the case last week.
Mahloof was accused with bribery for collecting USD 33,000 in return for voting for the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) bill in 2014 when he was acting as a legislator.
According to the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), Mahloof returned to the Maldives from Malaysia on August 27, 2014, to vote for the SEZ bill submitted by the Yameen administration. Furthermore, Mahloof was discovered to have collected USD 33,000 from the SOF company.
The Criminal Court stated in it’s statement that although the transaction of USD 33,000 can be proven through financial records, there is no concrete evidence to prove the money Mahloof received was a bribe to vote in favor of the SEZ bill and the Court does not consider witness testimonies as sufficient evidence.
Mahloof who is the Youth and Sports Minister has been suspended twice over the MMPRC embezzlement case.
