Camp-Levieux: a woman shot during a police operation, what we know
Élodie Thomas, 27, was hit by a bullet on Friday evening as she was being driven home through Camp-Levieux. A police sergeant has been provisionally charged and remains in custody. The facts so far, what happens next and the questions that remain.
Photo: Karsten Ratzke, CC0
In short
On Friday 9 October 2026, in the evening, a shot was fired at a minibus on a road obstructed by objects in Camp-Levieux, after a night of protests over water shortages. Élodie Thomas, 27, a passenger, was hit and is in intensive care at Victoria Hospital, Candos.
A police sergeant, Gautam Singh Taukoor, was arrested and appeared before the Weekend Court on Saturday on a provisional charge of possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life. Police opposed bail; he remains in custody and is due back in court on Monday 12 October. He is presumed innocent.
Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam promised there would be no cover-up and called for calm. The National Human Rights Commission and several political groups have asked for a judicial inquiry.
A 13-person medical team from India (KIMS Hospitals), working without charge, is due on Monday morning to carry out a complex operation, Health Minister Anil Bachoo said.
What happened
The night before, from 8 to 9 October, residents of Camp-Levieux protested over the lack of water. A police post and a police vehicle were damaged, seven people were arrested and charged with rebellion, and special units (GIPM, SMF, SSU) were deployed until about 3.20 am on Friday, according to Defimedia.
On Friday evening, a minibus carrying passengers through the area was on a road obstructed by objects when a shot was fired towards it. The bullet went through the rear window and hit Élodie Thomas, a part-time cashier from Plaisance, Rose-Hill, and the mother of a two-year-old. Police confirmed that a sergeant had fired his weapon, and that he was arrested and his weapon seized.
The minibus driver told Defimedia that an officer had pointed a revolver at his head before he drove off and the shot was fired. His account has not been confirmed by the police, who say their inquiry will establish the exact circumstances. Police later said the sergeant's alcohol test was negative.
What happens next
Court: the sergeant is due back before the court on Monday 12 October. The charge is provisional: it can be changed by the prosecution as the inquiry progresses. Former Attorney General Rama Valayden has asked the Director of Public Prosecutions to review it.
Inquiries: the National Human Rights Commission and the Plateforme Militante have called for a judicial inquiry. The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), which examines complaints against police officers, said it had not received a complaint about the case.
Treatment: a transfer to India was ruled out; instead, eight specialist doctors and five support staff led by Dr Rakesh Jalla of KIMS Hospitals are flying in to operate in Mauritius, the Health Minister announced. Her vital signs are stable, he said on Sunday.
The questions that remain
How the shot came to be fired, and why, is for the inquiry and the courts to establish. The case also raises wider questions that MoBriefs will follow: when officers may draw and fire a weapon during public-order operations, who investigates them, and how the water shortages that set off the protests will be resolved (see our brief on the water crisis).