Authorities at the Maldives Correctional Services have transferred jailed-ex President Abdullah Yameen to his home in Male' last night.
The opposition leader, who has been serving a five-year jail sentence for a money laundering charge, was shifted to house arrest amid a COVID-19 outbreak at the Maafushi jail where he had been jailed.
The Correctional Services confirmed via Twitter that Yameen had been transferred to temporary house arrest as many prison officers guarding the jail had tested positive for COVID-19 in the recent days.
The island of Kaafu Maafushi is currently under monitoring and Health Protection Agency HPA had said in its last update that more than 200 cases had now been confirmed from the island.
Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Prisons Ahmed Mohamed said in a late-night Tweet that all inmates with underlying high risk conditions would be transferred to temporary house arrest.
He said that this measure was taken to curb COVID-19 spread in the prisons.
Corrections information showed that more than 33 prison officers and 20 detainees have tested positive for COVID-19 from all four major prisons in the Greater Male' Area.
This includes 17 officers from Maafushi jail and another 12 from Aaseyri Prison in Himmafushi.
