Criminal Court orders freeze on ex-president Yameen's bank accounts

The Criminal Court has ordered a freeze on two bank accounts linked to former Maldivian president Abdulla Yameen, RaajjeMV has learned.

According to a source, the freeze was ordered on accounts linked to him at the national Bank of Maldives and the Maldives Islamic Bank.

RaajjeMV understands that the freeze has to do with an ongoing investigation into illicit transactions made through these accounts.

The Maldives Police Service on Thursday announced that they are investigating allegations against him and that he has been summoned for interrogation.

Yameen is to present himself at the police headquarters in capital city Malé at 2:00pm, Saturday. Officers are investigating how large amounts of money was deposited at an account he declared at the Elections Commission as the one used for campaign expenses.

While the former president maintains that any allegations of corruption and graft against him are false and cannot be proven, a case of MVR 22.5 million being deposited to an account linked to him ahead of September’s polls have also surfaced.

Yameen’s former deputy, ex-Vice President Ahmed Adeeb, has also said that he masterminded the embezzlement of MVR 1.2 billion through the state-run Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation, which illicitly funneled funds from island and lagoons leased for tourism development.

The Anti-Corruption Commission has found that funds embezzlement from the company has been deposited to accounts linked to 155 different individuals.