The now jailed former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom had been plotting to overthrow the government since 2015, police claimed Sunday.
In the latest revelation by police, spokesperson Ahmed Shifan said the 80 year old - the elder half brother of incumbent president Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom had instigated the plot to overthrow the democratically elected government since Ahmed Adheeb Abdul Ghafoor had been appointed as the vice president in 2015.
The island nation has been embroiled in fresh political turmoil after the Supreme Court on February 1 ordered the immediate release of jailed political leaders including self-exiled former president Mohamed Nasheed.
President Yameen on February 5 had declared state of emergency after his last ditch attempt to convince the top court to revoke the order failed, purged the Supreme Court by arresting two judges and the remaining political leaders and ultimately had the order revoked.
As the state of emergency approached it final hours, prosecutors got the country's criminal court to remand the suspects until the end of their respective trials which otherwise would have forced authorities to release them after the emergency state ended.
The most high-profile figures remanded until the end of the trial included Gayoom, chief justice Abdulla Saeed and top court judge Ali Hameed - all now formally charged with terrorism over the alleged plot to overthrow the government.
In addition to the terrorism charge, according to a statement released by the Prosecutor General's (PG) office, the trio who had been arrested under the state of emergency have also been charged with obstruction of justice over their refusal to handover their mobile phones to the police.
The two top court judges along with now jailed chief judicial administrator Hassan Saeed are also facing bribery charges. Chief justice Saeed is facing a fourth charge of impeding the functioning of the state for allegedly blocking the receipt of three letters sent by president Yameen shortly after the top court ruling on February 1.
The chief judicial administrator is facing the same charge for refusing to come in for police questioning.
PG office further said police had discovered MVR 350,000 (Maldivian Rufiyaa Three Hundred and Thirty Thousand) and USD 3,300 (United States Dollars Three Thousand and Three Hundred) hidden underneath the mattress of the chief judicial administrator.
"The statement said the police uncovered inside bag found in his room among other documents a letter on Villa Shipping & Trading Company Pvt Ltds letterhead signed by the said Company's Managing Director, Ibrahim Siyad Gasim.
"The letter shows that funds amounting to USD2.4 million given by Villa Shipping & Trading Company Pvt Ltd to the main suspects of this case and relatives of those suspect towards purchasing properties from a foreign country."
The document proves that the beneficiaries of the payment were judge Hameed's son, Chief justice Saeed and the ex-wife of the chief judicial administrator, the statement said.
The statement also said the police had verified the signatory of the document to be Siyad Gasim - son of Jumhoory Party (JP) leader and Villa Group owner Gasim Ibrahim while his fingerprints were also found on the document.
Siyad Gasim has been remanded until the end of the trial charged with offering a bribe.
Prosecutors have also formally charged four opposition lawmakers over the alleged coup plot.
Gayoom's lawmaker son Faris Maumoon, Jumhoory Party (JP) deputy leader Abdulla Riyaz, Dhangethi lawmaker Ilham Ahmed and South-Machchangoalhi lawmaker Abdulla Sinan have all been charged with terrorism for conspiring to overthrow the government. All four lawmakers have also been remanded until the trial ends.
"The bag contained a lot of information. It had crucial evidence and personal information to key suspects in the case. We've discovered strong evidence directly linked to the heinous plans to overthrow the government," Shifan claimed.
"The investigation had discovered that Dhiggaru MP Faris Maumoon had bribed several government lawmakers to join the opposition."
Shifan further revealed that Riyaz, Ilham and Sinan had led the effort to bribe fellow lawmakers while Gayoom along with Gasim had personally approached government lawmakers to back the coup plot.
According to Shifan, the now notorious 'black bag' recovered from the home of a close aide of Gayoom had contained crucial evidence connected to the case.
"The bag contained a lot of information. It had crucial evidence and personal information to key suspects in the case. We've discovered strong evidence directly linked to the heinous plans to overthrow the government," Shifan claimed.
In addition, former police chief Ahmed Areef has also been charged and remanded until sentencing.
PG office said Areef had handpicked certain police officers in violation of normal procedure to enforce the Supreme Court order and also attempted to disrupt the peace of the country.
