Former Maldives president pitched private island deal to Jeffrey Epstein after conviction
Newly released U.S. Justice Department records show Mohamed Waheed approached Jeffrey Epstein in 2014 with a proposal to develop a private island in the Maldives, highlighting Epstein’s continued contacts with political and business figures years after his sex-crime conviction.
Former President Mohamed Waheed of the Maldives pitched a private island investment worth $25 million to Jeffrey Epstein, according to newly released records from the U.S. Justice Department, adding to a growing body of material showing how Epstein cultivated ties with political and business figures around the world even after his 2008 conviction.
"You will have a small stunningly beautiful island with about 10 villas, each with three or four bedrooms," Waheed wrote to Epstein referring to Fuggiri, a small island in the Maldives, on May 18, 2014, eight months after leaving office. The project would target "Middle Eastern royal families and our rich Russian clients," he said. Waheed signed off: "Best regards to you and your beautiful students."
Epstein expressed interest and asked about the budget, the records show, though there is no indication the deal moved forward. In 2015, the Maldivian government leased Fuggiri for resort development to a Dubai-based company, Classic Citi Island Holdings, without a competitive bidding process.
The island later became the subject of an investigation by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, which found that the company behind the lease was controlled by Indian businessmen Amit and Avinash Kumar Gandhi through a network of shell companies revealed in the Pandora Papers. Former President Abdulla Yameen, who succeeded Waheed, is currently on trial in the Maldives, accused of accepting a $1.1 million bribe in connection with the no-bid lease of Fuggiri. He has denied wrongdoing.
The newly released Epstein files also identify Waheed’s business partner on the proposed resort projects as Ibrahim Mohamed Didi, a prominent Maldivian developer. Didi acted as an intermediary with Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, the chief executive of the Dubai ports operator DP World, according to the documents. Bin Sulayem appears frequently in Epstein’s correspondence, and text messages show Waheed was in contact with both men during the same period.
In one exchange from June 2012, Waheed told Epstein he was “meeting Sultan this evening on his boat,” to which Epstein replied, “I know sultan is there.” Records indicate bin Sulayem visited the Maldives in 2014 to discuss port investments with Yameen, who had succeeded Waheed in November 2013.
The correspondence between Waheed and Epstein began in September 2011, when Mr. Waheed was serving as vice president. After meeting Epstein during the United Nations General Assembly in New York, Mr. Waheed sent a message saying it was “refreshing to meet someone without any pretenses.” Epstein responded, “We will have fun.” Their exchanges continued until at least early 2016 and included dinners at Epstein’s Manhattan townhouse, holiday greetings and New Year’s messages.
Mr. Waheed resigned this month from his role as a presidential special envoy after the emails became public. In a statement, he said his interactions with Epstein were “strictly professional,” not social, and that he had been unaware of Epstein’s 2008 conviction at the time.
Mr. Waheed’s son, Jeffrey Salim Waheed, who attended a meeting with Epstein in 2014, said in a statement that the family learned of the full extent of Epstein’s crimes only years later. “Epstein was a monster,” he said. “But we only knew the depth of his depravity long after we stopped engaging with him.”
The documents do not suggest that the proposed island investment was completed or that Mr. Waheed was involved in any criminal activity. But they offer a detailed glimpse of how Epstein continued to position himself as a financier and dealmaker, drawing in former heads of state and well-connected intermediaries even as his past conduct was a matter of public record.
Pavel Raznokidis