A former Bank of Maldives (BML) employee, has been convicted of stealing over MVR 400,000 from multiple customer accounts.

The Criminal Court issued its ruling on Sunday, finding Ali Mazin, who worked as a customer service agent, guilty of fraud. Between May 14, 2021, and September 23, 2021, Mazin abused his access to the bank’s customer relationship management (CRM) system by altering the personal information of 13 customers and registering them for internet banking without their consent. He then transferred a total of MVR 482,611.41 from their accounts to his own.

Prosecutors revealed that Mazin used the stolen funds for Forex trading. Mazin admitted to the fraud and entered a plea deal with the prosecution.

Initially facing nine months and 18 days in prison, Mazin's sentence was reduced to 40 hours of community service and a MVR 56,200 fine due to the plea agreement. He was also ordered to compensate the bank as agreed.

BML suspended Mazin immediately after discovering the theft, conducted an internal investigation, and dismissed him. The bank later refunded the stolen money to its affected customers.