Authorities in the Maldives have frozen bank accounts linked to former president Abdulla Yameen.
Officials say the accounts hold a total of $6.5 million.
Suspicions that Yameen had received over $1 million in illegal payments have dogged him since his failed bid for re-election earlier this year.
Yameen's path to a second five-year term seemed assured with his main rivals either in jail or in exile.
Opposition leader Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, however, pulled off a victory with 58.4 percent of the votes.
The September election was widely seen as a referendum on whether democracy would survive in the country as Yameen had rolled back many of the democratic freedoms introduced to the country.
Maldives is an archipelago of more than 1,000 islands and atolls in the Indian Ocean. It is known for its sandy white beaches and luxury resorts.
