Former President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayyoom has submitted evidence to the Criminal Court to prove his innocence on two charges raised against him by the State.
The State raised money laundering and bribery against the former President, as he is suspected of having deposited funds from the sale of V. Aarah to his personal account and laundering the funds. Former Felidhoo MP Yoosuf Naeem is also being tried alongside Yameen on bribery charges. The trial began at the Criminal Court on January 2.
A preliminary hearing was held at the Criminal Court on Thursday, where the defense submitted its evidence. While 18 exhibits were presented, this included seven witnesses and 11 pieces of documentary evidence. The details of the evidence were not revealed during Thursday's hearing in order to save time.
Yoosuf Naeem also submitted 13 exhibits as evidence in his defense. This includes three witnesses and ten exhibits as documentary evidence.
The State raised doubts regarding the documentary evidence submitted by Yameen's legal team. While one document was on the sale of foreign currency, Public Prosecutor Hawwa Naahee noted that the document did not state the date on which the exchange occurred.
Responding to the inquiry, a lawyer on Yameen's legal team, Adam Shameem, said the transaction in question was related to the case. The lack of a date on the document was no reason it could be accepted as evidence, he said.
Shameem requested the Judge to hold an additional hearing to speak on the evidence submitted, as the next step in the trial was to identify and decide if the case could be tried as a civil matter. The judge scheduled another hearing for April 11 at 10:30 am.
In the previous hearing, the State had submitted its evidence. However, its details were not disclosed.
Former President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayyoom
