Maleesha owner admits fraud, agrees the money should be paid back

Head of Maleesha Hajj and Umra Group, Ismail Abdul Latheef has admitted the fraud case against him and agreed that he has to refund the money he has taken from a group of people with the promise of arranging the hajj pilgrimage.

Responding to the question by Judge Abdulla Mohamed at the trial in Criminal Court today, Latheef said that he has taken money from a group of people with the promise of arranging hajj pilgrimage. He also said that he believed that he has to return the money to them since he could not take them to hajj pilgrimage.

When asked for the reasons for presenting so many evidences to support the charges against Latheef, the state prosecutor said that those evidences are presented to prove that the people have not been refunded their money.

Statements from some of the witnesses provided by the state were taken in today’s trial as well.

The state prosecutor said that she would discuss with the Prosecutor General regarding taking statements from the rest of the witnesses.

The government has decided to offer the hajj pilgrimage to the people who were defrauded by Maleesha Hajj and Umra Group, and the government has already offered hajj pilgrimage to some of them this year.