A former Bank of Maldives (BML) customer service assistant has been fined and sentenced to community service by the Criminal Court for stealing funds from customer accounts.
Ali Mazin was charged with embezzlement. According to the prosecution, Mazin had fraudulently registered 13 customers for internet banking, without their knowledge or consent, between 18 September 2012 and 26 October 2021. He then transferred funds from their accounts into his own, using the money for forex trading.
A total of MVR 482,611.41 was deposited into Mazin’s account through these unauthorised transactions, which included invalid credit card payments and foreign exchange trading.
Mazin pleaded guilty to the charges and entered into a plea deal with the Prosecutor General’s Office. He was originally facing a prison sentence of 1 year, 7 months, and 6 days, but this was reduced to 9 months and 18 days due to the agreement.
The court further commuted the prison term to a fine of MVR 56,200 and 40 hours of community service. Mazin is also required to compensate the affected BML customers through an agreement with the bank, with repayment to be made as per the agreed terms.
The court ordered Mazin to pay the fine to the Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA) within three months. Additionally, he will be assigned a community service role by the Maldives Correctional Service.
