Former President Abdulla Yameen has refused the COVID-19 vaccine after initially requesting to get vaccinated.
Maldives Correctional Service (MCS) said the former president was brought to Male' upon his request to get vaccinated, but he was returned to Maafushi Prison after he refused the vaccine after arriving in the city.
While Yameen's family requested the authorities to transfer him to house arrest for the month of Ramadan, President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih said he will discuss with the relevant authorities on providing some leeway for the former president.
Former President Yameen was sentenced to five years in prison in November 2019, after the Criminal Court found him guilty of laundering USD 1 million embezzled from the state in the corruption scandal of Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC). Yameen is also currently under trial for another case of accepting bribes and money laundering, related to the lease of Fuhgiri, Raa Atoll, for resort development through MMPRC.