Sale of Planes to Iran: Ravatomanga Suspected of Money Laundering 5 Million Euros in Mauritius
Title: Sale of Planes to Iran: Ravatomanga Suspected of Money Laundering 5 Million Euros in Mauritius
Content:
Irshaad Olitte
Sunday, November 30, 2025 - 12:00
The Financial Crime Commission (FCC) is investigating the sale of five Boeing 777 aircraft to an Iranian airline that is under U.S. sanctions. Billionaire Mamy Ravatomanga is suspected of having received a 5 million euro commission.
Among the investigations conducted by the Mauritian FCC is a transaction that is both opaque and strategic: the sale of five Boeing 777s registered in Madagascar to the Iranian airline Mahan Air. This operation, orchestrated through Udaan Potentials Ltd—a company incorporated in Mauritius in 2019 and managed by Khushwinder Singh and Rahul Chawla Mahan—allegedly allowed the evasion of U.S. sanctions against Iran. The individuals involved are accused of submitting falsified documents to obtain the necessary registration certificates.
Mamy Ravatomanga's name has emerged in this context. Heading the Sodiat Group, founded in 1990 and considered the "Shadow President" during the presidency of Malagasy leader Andry Rajoelina, he is suspected of having played a central role in this transaction. FCC investigators believe he may have benefited from a 5 million euro commission for his alleged facilitation role in this scandal. The FCC suspects that this 5 million euros from Hong Kong has been funneled into the Mauritian financial circuit.
To establish communications between Khushwinder Singh and Mamy Ravatomanga related to these transactions, the FCC is now collaborating with the FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation). The investigation is expanding beyond just the Boeing case: Mauritian authorities also suspect that Mamy Ravatomanga, through his companies in Mauritius and abroad, has orchestrated money laundering operations stemming from cases of corruption, fraud, or rosewood trafficking. About twenty companies linked to the billionaire are undergoing a thorough review of their transactions.
Legal Context
This case unfolds against an already crowded judicial backdrop for the Malagasy businessman. Three complaints have been filed against him before the FCC in recent weeks. The first, recorded on October 13, comes from Paul Sylvestra Koufali Daya, a Malagasy of Mozambican origin, who accuses Mamy Ravatomanga of involvement in illicit financial transactions.
In support of his complaint, he produced a document dated June 23, 2017, issued by France's National Financial Prosecutor's Office (PNF), concerning the concealment and laundering of public funds. This document includes a request for international legal assistance directed at the judicial authorities of Madagascar, as the PNF has initiated a preliminary investigation into allegations of corruption, tax evasion, and money laundering against Mamy Ravatomanga.
Six days later, on October 19, Fanirisoa Ernaivo, Madagascar's Minister of Justice, filed a second complaint. She accuses Mamy Ravatomanga of fraudulent financial transactions through companies based in Mauritius, allegedly involved in money laundering, corruption, and global fraud.
Finally, on October 21, the FCC recorded a third complaint from Ramana Anthelème Ramparany, a former Malagasy Minister of the Environment, who accuses Mamy Ravatomanga and Andry Rajoelina of involvement in illegal rosewood exports.
Since October 24, Mamy Ravatomanga has been under arrest and faces two provisional charges of money laundering involving 6.4 million and 858,489,298 Mauritian rupees, in violation of the Financial Crimes Commission Act, as well as a third provisional charge of influence peddling.
New Hospitalization for the Magnate
Back to Hospital… After a night at the Moka Detention Centre on Saturday morning (November 29), Malagasy billionaire Mamy Ravatomanga complained of health issues. He was taken to Victoria Hospital in Candos, examined by a specialist, and admitted to the Cardiac Unit. The day before, he had spent his first hours in police custody.
On Friday, November 28, public medical personnel deemed Mamy Ravatomanga fit to stay in police custody. By order of the police commissioner’s office, investigators from the FCC transferred him from his private room to cell number 14 at Moka Detention Centre.