Former President of the Football Association of Maldives (FAM) Bassam Adil Jaleel has requested to extend the time given to complete the handover of two apartments he acquired on Amin Avenue in Hulhumale’ to the Maldives Police Service (MPS). He requested to extend the duration till October 31.
The initial deadline to hand over the apartments were set as today. However, Bassam's lawyers requested, on behalf of him, to extend the duration. The court indicated that it is currently reviewing the request and is undertaking the necessary administrative procedures to respond.
The MPS submitted the case to the Prosecutor General's Office last month, alleging that Bassam used funds provided by FIFA as aid for Maldivian football clubs during the COVID-19 pandemic to finance the apartment purchases.
FIFA allocated USD 1.9 million in loans to the FAM to assist football clubs facing financial challenges due to the pandemic. The MPS has charged Bassam and three others with misappropriating USD 1 million from the loan for the purchase of the flats. Those charged include the owner of Amin Avenue, Amin Construction, as well as FAM finance head Mohamed Agil and Hassan Waheed.
Police allege that Bassam utilized FAM funds amounting to USD 200,789.80 to acquire the two apartments on Amin Avenue. Notably, FIFA has previously suspended Bassam for nine months due to allegations of misuse of FIFA funds.