Returned to Police Custody - Ashik Jagai: "No Reward Money was Paid to Me"
Ashik Jagai, the former head of the PHQ Special Striking Team (SST), will remain in police custody until August 21, 2025. "No Reward Money was paid to me," stated the superintendent of police (SP) on Thursday, August 14, 2025, during his second interrogation at the Financial Crimes Commission (FCC).
This hearing took place following his appearance before the Port-Louis court. Under questioning by FCC investigators, with his lawyer, Me Raouf Gulbul, present, he faced extensive scrutiny regarding numerous amounts claimed from August 2022 to February 2024, totaling Rs 62.7 million, plus approximately Rs 17 million from April to September 2024.
The FCC accuses him of having abused his position at the head of the now-dissolved PHQ SST to repeatedly request what they consider excessive Reward Money, including Rs 7 million in a case handled by Sergeant Hossen Mose in November 2022.
The SP has again denied the allegations against him. He clarified that he only ensured that the Reward Money requests made by his subordinates at the time were forwarded to the Higher Quarters of the Central Barracks for validation.
Ashik Jagai's hearing will continue in the coming days. Investigators plan to ask him for further explanations regarding the multiple Reward Money requests. He was arrested on Wednesday, August 13, 2025, by the FCC and spent the night in a cell at the Coromandel police station.
He appeared in court the next day under heavy police escort, greeted by jeers from the crowd. He was then taken to the FCC premises for questioning. After this procedure, he was transported to the Moka Detention Centre, where he will remain until August 21.
Ashik Jagai is the sixth police officer provisionally charged in this case. Assistant Police Commissioner (ACP) Lilram Deal is suspected of unlawfully receiving a bonus of Rs 4.5 million as part of the Reward Money scheme. ACP Dunraz Gangadin is accused of allowing Rs 160.3 million from the Reward Money Fund to pass through his personal bank account. Both ACPs, charged with money laundering, are currently out on bail.
Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Faraaz Mooniaruth, the former head of the Crime Intelligence Unit (FCIU) created by former Commissioner Anil Kumar Dip but now disbanded, along with Sergeant Yeshdeo Seeboruth from the Police Research & Development Unit (PRDU), have also been arrested in this case. They are suspected in relation to Reward Money claims totaling Rs 3 million. ASP Mooniaruth is accused of recommending a payment of Rs 3 million to Sergeant Seeboruth, who acted as a "handler." The FCC also alleges that Sergeant Seeboruth cashed Rs 19.3 million from the Reward Money Scheme into his personal bank account. The fifth officer arrested is Sergeant Yusuf Ali Hamud Hossen, also known as Hossen Mose. He was part of the now-defunct PHQ SST and is accused of receiving Rs 83 million in his personal bank account, also allocated under the Reward Money scheme.
