Expat who pocketed MVR 8M in illegal recruitment racket receives 2 years under plea deal

A Bangladeshi man at the center of an illegal recruitment racket found to have pocketed over MVR 8 million has been sentenced to two years in prison under a plea deal with the state.

In May, the police publicized information regarding an illegal recruitment and money laundering racket involving Shahadath Hussain, 34, and several local collaborators, including immigration officials.

Shahadath began residing in the Maldives in 2014. In 2019, he opened six accounts with the Bank of Maldives (BML); three MVR accounts and three USD ones.

Although officially listed as an “office boy,” his documentation recorded a suspiciously high monthly salary of USD 3,000. His work permit expired in July 2024 due to failure to make visa fee payments.

Over MVR 8 million in deposits were made to Shahadath’s bank accounts between 2019 and 2024.

He worked with local collaborators, including immigration officials, to run an illegal recruitment agency, manipulating the system and having fake work permits issued.

In many instances, foreign workers paid for these permits, with the funds transferred to bank accounts in Bangladesh.

Shahadhath was pressed with five charges in the case; money laundering, bribery, failure to seek authorization, and two counts of issuance of forged official documents.

The state also asked the court to have the MVR 8 million in his accounts seized.

Shahadath signed a plea deal with the state, under which he pled guilty to money laundering and bribery, but had the other charges dropped.

The Criminal Court issued its verdict on Tuesday.

The plea deal ensured he had his sentence cut by half.

As such, he was sentenced to two-and-a-half-years in prison and MVR 53,400 in fines for money laundering – a charge with a minimum sentencing requirement of five to 15 years in prison and a fine of MVR 100,000 to MVR 1 million.

And for bribery, he was sentenced to six months in prison and fined MVR 21,600 – much less than the minimum sentencing requirement of three years in prison.

His sentence was adjusted for time served, leaving him with two years, one month and 12 days left to serve.

The police previously said that a search of Shahadath’s phone and laptop uncovered digital copies of forged work permit documents, passport photos of foreign workers, and ID cards of Maldivians. Investigators also found browsing history related to the Xpat system and evidence of fake credentials used to access government administrative systems, including IDs and registrations under 574 entities, spanning private businesses, foreign companies, partnerships, and individuals.