K-Park scam: Police arrest Manday

Maldives Police Services on Wednesday arrested Hassan Mamdhooh (Manday) who is involved in the fraudulent sale of apartments from the K-Park Residences, a condominium under development in Hulhumale’ by Hanbo.

As per Police, Manday was arrested under a court order, in connection to an ongoing investigation. However, no further details were provide by the authority.

Notably, this came after the Criminal Court on Tuesday ordered Police to release Manday’s passport.

Sun received information that the passport was released following a request put in for Manday to go see his wife who has given birth. The request was for 45 days.

The Hanbo company launched the K-Park project in 2016. It is co-owned by Jin Shihu, a Chinese national who holds 95 percent shares and Manday, who is the minority share holder with only five percent.

In addition to Manday, two more people, identified by the police as a local and a foreigner, have been banned from traveling overseas as the police investigate the case.

Police has stated that the case involves sale of apartments from the K-Park Residences using forged documents, and embezzlement of the money collected in the scam.

In a statement regarding the case, Hanbo said that unbeknownst to the company, Manday and Jaishan Saeed sold multiple apartments at the condominium using fraud and deceit.

They also said that while the company’s official bank account is with the State Bank of India, large sums of money were deposited to a USD and MVR account opened with the Bank of Maldives, by forging the signature of the company’s managing director, Shihu. The allege these funds were later taken out by Manday.

Meanwhile Manday denies all the allegations against him, and described them as a conspiracy carried after he opposed plans by Hanbo Company's managing director, Jin Shihu to appoint the local contractor hired to install windows as the company’s board secretary.

A staff of Urbanco who is accused of involvement in the scam was suspended during May as well.