President Gotabaya Rajapaksa of Sri Lanka fled the country in the early hours of the morning by military jet and landed in Maldives, the BBC reported, citing unidentified people.

Rajapaksa, his wife, and a bodyguard were among the four passengers onboard a military aircraft that took off from the main international airport outside Colombo, AFP reported, citing immigration officials. They arrived in Maldives and were driven to an undisclosed location under police escort, AFP said, citing an airport official in Male.

His brother and former finance minister Basil Rajapaksa also left the country and is likely to be heading to the U.S., according to the BBC.

Rajapaksa has yet to send in his resignation letter, according to people familiar with the matter. The leader had told the speaker and the prime minister earlier this week he will step down on Wednesday.