The Criminal Court has sentenced former President of the Football Association of Maldives (FAM), Bassam Adeel Jaleel, to five years in prison and fined him MVR 154,000 after finding him guilty of embezzlement and money laundering.

Bassam was previously convicted of depositing USD 10,000 from FIFA’s 2018 funds into his personal bank account by submitting falsified documents to the bank. He was sentenced to four years in prison by the Criminal Court in October for embezzlement linked to the same funds.

In the latest ruling, the presiding judge concluded that Bassam had acquired the money through criminal means and laundered it for personal benefit. The prosecution requested a 15-year prison sentence and a fine of USD 200,000, but the court decided to reduce the penalty after considering that Bassam had no prior criminal record.

Following arguments from both the prosecution and the defence, the court imposed a five-year prison term and a fine equivalent to USD 10,000.

Bassam continues to face additional trials in several other embezzlement cases. With the two convictions now in effect, he is currently serving a total of nine years in prison.