The Criminal Court has sentenced Hassan Mamdhooh to 397 years in prison and Jaishan Saeed to 157 years after both were found guilty in relation to the fraudulent sale of flats at the K-Park Residence in Hulhumalé.

The sentences were delivered on Wednesday following charges that the defendants forged documents and sold apartments without authorisation from the company.

According to case findings, Mamdhooh and Jaishan forged the signature of Jin Shihu, the majority shareholder of Hanbo Company Pvt Ltd, to open a bank account at the Bank of Maldives. Through this account, they marketed and sold apartments under the K-Park project, including transactions in which multiple buyers paid for the same unit. The court stated that the scheme involved falsified documents, deception, and the laundering of funds obtained from the sales.

Mamdhooh was convicted on 46 counts of obtaining illicit benefits through misrepresentation, 44 counts of fraud, three counts of producing false documents for the purpose of deception, and one count of money laundering. The court issued cumulative sentences amounting to 368 years for scamming, 14 years for fraud, one and a half years for document forgery, and 15 years for money laundering, bringing his total to 397 years. He was also fined MVR 30 million and the State was ordered to seize a penthouse purchased in Hulhumalé using the proceeds of the crime.

Jaishan was convicted of 45 counts of obtaining illicit benefits through misrepresentation, 40 counts of fraud, and aiding and abetting money laundering. He received 139 years for scamming, 13 years for fraud, and five years for assisting money laundering, amounting to a total sentence of 157 years. The court also ordered that both defendants must return funds obtained through the scheme within six months.

The case is regarded as one of the most extensive real estate fraud incidents investigated in the Maldives, involving forged documentation, unauthorised sales, and the misuse of a corporate identity to obtain funds. Both men remain in custody following sentencing.