PGO Files Charges Against Former Broadcom Vice President Fazeen

The Prosecutor General’s Office (PGO) has filed criminal charges against Mohamed Fazeen, the former vice president of the Maldives Broadcasting Commission (Broadcom), in connection with a sexual harassment case.

A PGO media official said the case was submitted to the Criminal Court on Sunday, with two charges brought against Fazeen. One charge relates to physical contact, which carries a sentence of one month and six days’ imprisonment. The second charge is sexual abuse, which is punishable by up to three years in prison.

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The PGO said the allegations first emerged in April 2024, during Ramadan. Fazeen resigned from his post in March last year. At the time, his lawyer issued a statement quoting Fazeen as saying he had stepped down because he was not in a position to carry out his duties without “taking a side”. The statement denied all allegations against him and described the available evidence as “hearsay”, despite investigations conducted by the police, the Broadcasting Commission’s internal committee, and Parliament’s Committee on Independent Institutions.

The matter was initially submitted to Parliament, where the Committee on Independent Institutions reviewed the case. Following its preliminary investigation, the committee concluded that testimony from complainants and other employees summoned before the commission clearly indicated that a Broadcasting Commission staff member had been subjected to abusive language and inappropriate touching. The committee referred its findings to the full Parliament, which authorised it to proceed with dismissal action. Fazeen resigned before the committee convened to formalise his dismissal.