Maldives' ex-president acquitted from money laundering charges

Male, Nov 30 Former President of the Maldives Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom was acquitted of money laundering charges by the Supreme Court of Maldives on Tuesday, Xinhua news agency reported quoting local media reports.

Yameen was accused of illegally receiving 1 million US dollars to his personal account from a private company and convicted for money laundering by the criminal court in November 2019.

He was sentenced to five years in prison and ordered to pay 5 million dollars in compensation to the state.

Yameen's conviction was upheld by the Higher Court, after which his defence appealed to the Supreme Court. Appellate hearings began in September and were concluded on November 5.

An additional hearing was held on November 18, and the verdict was announced on Tuesday.

The bench said it could not be proven that the money posted to Yameen's personal account was originally intended to go to a state institution.

Yameen currently has two other money laundering charges against him, for which trials are still going on.