Sri Lanka, Oct. 29 -- The High Court of the Maldives has acquitted a Sri Lankan national who had already served a one-year prison sentence for allegedly smuggling more than two kilograms of gold into the country.

The acquittal was delivered yesterday (28), exactly one year after the Criminal Court convicted and sentenced him on October 28, 2025, for smuggling goods into the Maldives.

The case originated on September 21, 2023, when the Sri Lankan arrived at Velana International Airport on a flight via Dubai.

Customs officers stopped him as he attempted to leave through the Green Channel after finding documents indicating that he had purchased gold in Dubai.

A subsequent search uncovered 2,282 grams of gold paste concealed in the front ...