Colombo, Sept. 4 — Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) MP Namal Rajapaksa was today ordered into remand custody until September 18, following his arrest by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) over alleged involvement in a multi‑million‑euro bribery scheme connected to an aircraft procurement deal.
Rajapaksa appeared before CIABOC earlier in the day and provided a statement for nearly five hours. Officials subsequently took him into custody and produced him before court, where a 14‑day remand order was issued.
The development comes just days ahead of a major SLPP rally scheduled for September 12 in Anuradhapura, where Rajapaksa was expected to play a prominent role.
Complaint Linked to Businessman Nimal Perera
CIABOC confirmed that the arrest was made based on a complaint filed by businessman Nimal Perera, which investigators say was allegedly obtained under intimidation — a claim previously highlighted in earlier disclosures.
CIABOC Statement on Alleged Bribery Trail
According to the Commission’s official media release, investigators have uncovered the following:
- During an aircraft purchase transaction, EUR 1,454,651.24 received as a bribe was deposited into the BIZ Solutions INC account at Standard Chartered Bank, Singapore.
- From this sum, USD 800,000 was transferred to an OCBC Bank Singapore account belonging to Sabre Vision Holdings Ltd, owned by W.W.D. Nimal Hemasiri Perera.
- CIABOC alleges that, corresponding to this amount, LKR 100 million was obtained as bribes from Perera on multiple occasions in 2014 and 2015.
Rajapaksa has been named a suspect in the case and will remain in custody pending further investigations.
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