Africa-Press. A court in Saint-Denis on the French island of Réunion sentenced former Comorian Foreign Minister Dhoihir Dhukamal to two years in prison after convicting him of defrauding the social welfare system and embezzling public funds exceeding 340,000 euros. French authorities also issued an arrest warrant for him.
The trial of the former Comorian official took place in his absence on Friday, May 29, as he was not interrogated during the investigation despite an international arrest warrant being issued. The court found him, along with his wife, guilty of “providing false statements” and “fraud.”
According to investigations, Dhoihir Dhukamal, who obtained French citizenship in 2000 and officially resides in Réunion, illegally received approximately 253,000 euros from the French family allowance fund, in addition to nearly 87,000 euros from the social security fund between 2010 and 2020.
Investigations revealed that the former official was elected as a member of the Comorian Parliament in 2015, but he was living almost permanently in his home country, where he received financial allowances as a deputy in Parliament and later as a minister in the government. He also failed to declare to French tax authorities the income and allowances he received in Comoros.
The investigations also uncovered that his wife, who has no officially declared income, did not report any financial resources, which raised suspicions about their illegal benefits from French social assistance.
French investigators were unable to locate Dhoihir Dhukamal for questioning throughout the investigation, which halted in 2020 and resumed again in 2024 when he was serving as Foreign Minister, during which he enjoyed diplomatic immunity.
Following the ruling, French judicial authorities issued an arrest warrant for the former government official, while authorities in Moroni have yet to take any action regarding the case, especially given the lack of an extradition agreement between France and Comoros.
