Former Mauritius Finance Minister Granted Bail In Fraud Case

A court in Mauritius has granted bail to a former finance minister charged with fraud over alleged embezzlement at a state-owned company, his lawyer and the financial crimes commission said on Monday.

Renganaden Padayachy and former central bank governor Harvesh Seegolam were arrested and charged last week over the reported embezzlement of 300 million Mauritius rupees 6.7million from the Mauritius Investment Corporation, set up to help companies deal with impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Padayachy and Seegolam have both denied wrongdoing. Seegolam was freed on bail last week.

On Monday the court granted Padayachy bail after the financial crimes commission said it did not oppose his release, a commission spokesperson said.

Raouf Gulbul, Padayachys lawyer, welcomed the courts decision.