Supreme Court Rules on Passport Confiscation Upon Prosecution in Major Criminal Cases

The Supreme Court today ruled that the passports of those accused in serious criminal cases should be withheld by the Immigration Department.

The Supreme Court today ruled in the case of "SeaLife Global" owner Ahmed Musa (Ammaty) who was allowed to leave the country. Today, they overruled the Criminal Court's decision to allow Ahmed Musa to leave the country.

A bench of Justices Husnu Suoodh, Mahaaz Ali and Aishath Shujoon unanimously ruled that the Criminal Court's decision to release Musa’s passport was wrong.

If a person accused of a serious criminal offense flees abroad, the criminal justice system will be hampered in the administration of justice, Justice Hosnu Suoodh said. To prevent that from happening, the judges unanimously placed the responsibility of seizing the passports of the accused on Maldives Immigration.

According to the Supreme Court judgment, it is the responsibility of the Maldives Immigration to blacklist such persons and prevent them from leaving the country. In addition, the Supreme Court ruled that the person accused of a serious criminal offense should be banned from leaving Maldives until the appeal proceedings are completed.

In the trial of a charge of a serious criminal offense, a person can be allowed to go abroad for medical treatment only if a doctor appears in court and gives an opinion that the treatment he is seeking is not available in Maldives.