The former Bank of Mauritius‘ Governor, Harvesh Seegolam, was charged with fraud on Thursday and released on bail, according to his attorney.
This comes a day after he and the former finance minister were detained for allegedly stealing from a state corporation. Seegolam and Renganaden Padayachy, the former Minister of Finance, have denied any involvement in the probe into the alleged theft of 300 million Mauritius rupees ($6.70m) from the Mauritius Investment Corporation, which was established to assist businesses in coping with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to Seegolam’s lawyer: “Seegolam is collaborating with the authorities. He is giving all evidence and information related to this case.”
The previous administration, which included the two former officials, has been accused by Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam’s cabinet, which was elected in November, of fabricating data on public debt, budget deficit, and economic growth for years, BrandSpur national news reports.
Ramgoolam initiated an audit of the public finances as one of his first actions. Pravind Jugnauth, his predecessor and former prime minister, was detained in February on suspicion of money laundering, an allegation he has rejected.
