Man Sentenced to Nearly 15 Years in Prison Following Drug Trafficking Conviction

The Criminal Court has convicted Hussain Yameen Ibrahim of drug trafficking following a plea agreement, sentencing him to nearly 15 years in prison alongside a substantial financial penalty.

According to the prosecution presented by the Prosecutor General’s Office, officers from the Maldives Police Service intercepted and arrested Yameen on 12 October 2025 at approximately 19:10 outside his residence in Malé.

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The operation was launched following intelligence received earlier that afternoon alleging that Yameen , in collusion with others, was involved in the possession, use, and commercial distribution of narcotics.

Following his arrest, officers served Yameen  with a court-issued search warrant and entered the property. During a search of his person, police retrieved a key from the rear left pocket of his jeans, which was subsequently used to open his locked residential room on the first floor.

A search conducted in the defendant’s presence uncovered multiple stashes of narcotics across the residence:

• A rubber packet containing a juice-patty bag was retrieved from inside a cloth bag hidden atop a wooden wall fixture on the first floor. Forensic testing confirmed the package contained 50.0824 grams of mephedrone.

• A second stash containing 15.6511 grams of mephedrone was discovered inside a footrest located on the upper level of the room.

• An additional nine rubber packets containing 28.2748 grams of mephedrone were seized from the detergent compartment of a washing machine in the kitchen.

In addition to the narcotics, officers confiscated cash totaling MVR 90,140, comprising MVR 5,105 found in Yameen’s pocket, MVR 35,010 from atop a cabinet, and MVR 50,023 from a cabinet shelf. With the defendant unable to account for the origin of the funds, state prosecutors classified the money as proceeds derived from drug trafficking and requested its forfeiture.

Following a full confession by the defendant, the court formally convicted Yameen of drug trafficking. Taking into account the 1 year and 5 days he had already spent in pre-trial detention during the investigation phase, the court ordered him to serve a remaining sentence of 14 years, 11 months, and 25 days in prison.

The court also imposed a fine of MVR 100,000, payable to the Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA) within 12 months, and ordered the full MVR 90,140 seized during the operation to be forfeited to the state.

As part of the terms outlined in the plea agreement, separate charges previously brought against Yameen before the Criminal Court concerning cannabis trafficking and cannabis use were formally withdrawn by the State.