In Clémencia, Bel-Air: A Policeman Arrested for Attempted Theft in a Shop

A policeman who had been absent from his post for over eight months without permission was arrested in Clémencia, Bel-Air, for attempted theft in a store on the village's Royal Road.

The incident occurred around 2 AM during the night from Tuesday to Wednesday, February 4. The shop owner was alerted to suspicious activities happening in his store.

He called the local police before heading to the scene. The 72-year-old retiree reportedly caught an individual tampering with an aluminum door located at the back of the store using a sabre.

The suspect had previously placed a piece of cloth over a surveillance camera to prevent it from recording. The shopkeeper managed to subdue the individual on-site. The police arrived shortly after and arrested him.

An identity check revealed that the suspect is a policeman with about ten years of service. The sabre and a black bag were seized and sealed as evidence. The officer had joined the force in 2015 but had been unauthorizedly absent for several months.

By 2025, he had accumulated nearly 286 days of absence and remained absent from January 1 to Wednesday, February 4, 2026. On February 4, he appeared before the Flacq court, where he was provisionally charged with attempted burglary. He was placed in police detention at the Rivière-Sèche station.