No Evidence to Charge Former MD Fazul, Says PGO

The Prosecutor General’s Office (PGO) has decided not to file criminal charges against Housing Development Corporation (HDC)’s former Managing Director, Ibrahim Fazul Rasheed, and the company’s former IT Head, Abdulla Shuhood, over allegations that documents were deleted from the corporation’s server to obstruct a criminal investigation.
In a statement published on its website, the PGO said there was insufficient evidence to prove that any offence had been committed. As a result, charges could not be pursued in connection with the alleged deletion of documents that were said to be unrecoverable.
The PGO explained that Fazul and Shuhood were suspected of obstructing justice by allegedly deleting documents and data from HDC’s server that could have served as evidence in an ongoing investigation. However, the Office noted that an internal report prepared by HDC’s IT department found no indication that any documents or data had been deleted or lost from the server.
This conclusion was supported by a police investigative report, which stated that investigators found no evidence showing that Fazul or Shuhood had destroyed documents stored on HDC’s server.
Fazul had been accused of destroying official HDC documents related to the allocation of land under the previous government’s landowner scheme, particularly land allegedly awarded to individuals who were not included in the eligible list. The police and the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) have been investigating broader allegations of corruption involving the allocation of flats in Hulhumalé to ineligible recipients.
Among the allegations against Fazul was the claim that land had been allocated to his half brother, Mohamed Fazeel Rasheed, the former Deputy Managing Director of the Maldives Water and Sewerage Company (MWSC). Investigators have also examined claims that land was leased to other individuals who did not meet the required criteria.
Fazul resigned from his position as Managing Director of HDC on 21 December 2024, stating at the time that he was stepping down due to the ongoing police and ACC investigations. During the investigation, police recovered a bag containing MVR 1.4 million in cash from his home and seized the money.
However, the speedboat operator Relax Ferry Service later claimed ownership of the cash, stating that it had been paid to Fazul’s company as commission for building a speedboat. The police subsequently returned the cash after reviewing the claim.
Despite the investigations, Fazul has appeared at several frontline events held by the ruling People’s National Congress (PNC).

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