Malawi's former President Peter Mutharika has threatened legal action against a local bank following the freezing of his accounts by the country's anti-corruption body in August, the Nation newspaper reports.

The newspaper cites a letter from Mr Mutharika's lawyer that said a three-month restriction notice on his account had since expired.

Malawi's Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) froze the bank accounts of Mr Mutharika and his wife over “strange withdrawals” during an investigation into alleged tax evasion in the importation of 800 000 bags of cement.

The alleged tax evasion offences were committed in 2018 and 2019 when Mr Mutharika was still in power.

He has denied any wrongdoing.