The sentencing hearing for the charges raised against former Controller of Immigration Mohamed Sham'aan Waheed, which was scheduled for today, has been postponed.

The Criminal Court had scheduled Sham'aan's sentencing hearing for 1:00 PM this afternoon.

However, as his defense attorney is currently abroad, a request was made to postpone the hearing. Following this, the Criminal Court stated that it has decided to defer the hearing to another day. However, the court did not disclose the date on which the hearing will now take place.

The Prosecutor General's Office has raised three charges against Sham'aan.

One of those charges is complicity in extortion. If he is found guilty of this offense, it will carry a prison sentence of three years, two months, and 12 days.

The second charge is the offense of abuse of official authority. If that charge is proven, it will carry a prison sentence of one year, seven months, and six days.

The third is the charge of money laundering. If found guilty of this charge, he will be sentenced to a fine between MVR 100,000 and MVR 1 million along with a prison sentence of 5 to 15 years, or a fine not exceeding five times the amount of money involved in the criminal act (the laundered sum) along with a prison sentence of 5 to 15 years.

Sham'aan has denied all of these charges.