Theft of MVR 279k by hacking: Man sentenced to 4 months in jail after entering plea agreement

The Criminal Court has sentenced 19-year-old Abdulla Israag, Gulbakaage, GDh. Thinadhoo, to prison his role in a major scam involving the theft of a substantial sum of money through compromised accounts.

Israag was one of 10 individuals arrested in connection with the case in January this year.

The prosecution charged Israag with unlawfully exercising authority over another person’s property. He subsequently entered into a plea agreement with the Prosecutor General’s Office, pleading guilty to the offence during court proceedings.

Although the prescribed baseline sentence for the offence is one year, seven months, and six days of imprisonment, the court reduced the term to nine months and 18 days in accordance with the plea agreement.

Presiding Judge Ibrahim Zihunee ruled that, after accounting for the five months and 15 days Israag had already spent in custody during the investigation and trial, he must serve a remaining prison term of four months and three days.

Background of the Case: Major Operation in January

Israag and nine other individuals were arrested following a targeted operation launched on January 21 by the Maldives Police Service’s Anti-Scam Centre, Gang Crime Department, and atoll police stations. The suspects included six individuals arrested in Malé, three in Addu City, and one in K. Himmafushi.

Police disclosed at the time that the network had gained access to an individual’s social media accounts and subsequently withdrawn more than MVR 279,600 from a bank account belonging to a company in which the victim held shares. Those arrested were reportedly involved in different aspects of the scheme:

Six individuals were accused of receiving the proceeds of the scam into their personal bank accounts.

One individual allegedly transferred the funds to various businesses to purchase goods.

Three individuals, including Israag, were involved in transporting others to ATMs to withdraw the money before collecting the proceeds.

According to court documents, Israag received Maldivian Rufiyaa withdrawn through ATMs after an individual’s internet banking account was compromised and funds were transferred from a family joint dollar account to several other accounts.