Parliamentarian Namal Rajapaksa has been ordered to remain in remand custody until September 23 by the Colombo Fort Magistrate’s Court today (16).
The order was issued when the case filed by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) over alleged money laundering linked to the Airbus transaction was taken up before Fort Magistrate Pasan Amaraseena.
The case has been filed against four suspects, including Namal Rajapaksa.
Deputy Solicitor General Janaka Bandara informed the court that the investigation extracts related to the case had been submitted to the Attorney General and that steps would be taken to file indictments against the suspects without delay.
He said the investigation concerns alleged bribery in connection with the process of acquiring 16 wide-body aircraft for SriLankan Airlines under an agreement with Airbus.
The Deputy Solicitor General told the court that businessman Nimal Perera had disclosed in an affidavit information regarding a payment of US$800,000 allegedly connected to Namal Rajapaksa. He said the amount was approximately Rs. 100 million.
The court was also informed that forensic investigations conducted with international assistance had uncovered email communications relating to transactions between Namal Rajapaksa and Airbus.
President’s Counsel Anil Silva, appearing for the suspect, requested bail, while the Deputy Solicitor General objected to the request.
After considering the submissions, the Fort Magistrate ordered Namal Rajapaksa to be further remanded until September 23.
