Former FAM President Bassam Charged with Embezzlement and Money Laundering

Former Football Association of Maldives (FAM) President Bassam Adeel Jaleel has been charged with embezzlement and money laundering.

The Prosecutor General's Office said today that USD $10,000 of FIFA's 2018 deposit to the FAM was deposited into Bassam's personal account on August 26th that year.

The prosecutor's office said a transfer of $10,004 to an account opened in Bassam's name at the Bank of Maldives was submitted, and $9,999 was deposited into his account after the bank had deducted $5 as bank charges.

The prosecutor said the documents submitted to the bank stated 'sales of dollars' as the purpose of the deposit, but it was not known whether the $9,999 had ever entered the FAM's account. It is not known whether Bassam deposited any money with the FAM or if he used all of it for his own purposes.

The money laundering charges were filed against him for depositing $1,910 into a private account on September 2nd, 2018, and using it for Glacier Investments Pvt. Ltd., a company in which Bassam has a stake. The money deposited in his account was sent to different people in different amounts, spent on things unrelated to the FAM, along with being used for personal purposes.

The prosecutor's office said Bassam faces a jail term of one year, seven months and six days if convicted of embezzlement. For the charge against him relating to money laundering, he faces a fine of between 100,000 and 1 million MVR, as well as a prison sentence of between 5 and 15 years.

The prosecution has also asked the state to recover USD $10,000 used for money laundering.

The case is still under investigation and the prosecutor's office will continue to decide on legal action against further transactions uncovered as things unfold.