Namal Rajapaksa has been remanded until September 23 in money-laundering case

Member of Parliament Namal Rajapaksa has been remanded until September 23rd by the Colombo Fort Magistrate, after he was named as a suspect in an ongoing financial irregularities and money laundering case on Monday.

The case, filed by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), is in connection with the procurement of Airbus aircraft by SriLankan Airlines.

Rajapaksa was already in remand custody on allegations of bribery filed by the Commission for Investigating Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC).

Background

Rajapaksa was arrested on September 4 and remanded until September 18 after CIABOC arrested him on allegations of having accepted bribes of up to Rs. 100 million in relation to the deal between SriLankan Airlines and Airbus.

CIABOC officials claimed that a businessman who had helped transfer the money to Rajapaksa had filed an affidavit implicating him.

Rajapaksa’s defense, however, claimed that the businessman’s account of the events was inconsistent and unreliable.