Two former senior state officials arrested on corruption charges

Two former senior state officials have been apprehended on corruption charges by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC).

Accordingly, former General Manager of Sri Lanka Railways Sumathipala Mahanama Abeywickrama has been arrested today (03) at 9:15 a.m., while Sarathchandra Gunaratna Jayathilaka, the former Director of the State Engineering Corporation of Sri Lanka has been arrested at 10:15 a.m. by officers of the Bribery Commission.

Sumathipala Mahanama Abeywickrama has been arrested in connection with an incident where, following a formal disciplinary inquiry conducted under Section XLVIII, Clause 1 of the Establishments Code, a railway driver was found guilty and ordered to be dismissed from service with immediate effect by the then General Manager of Railways, B.A.P. Ariyarathna. However, Abeywickrama is alleged to have altered that disciplinary order and taken steps not to dismiss the said railway driver, thereby granting him an undue benefit.

Meanwhile, Sarathchandra Gunaratna Jayathilaka has been arrested for allegedly deploying employees and property of the State Engineering Corporation—without following proper procedures—for renovation work at the United National Party (UNP) headquarters ‘Sirikotha’, causing a loss of over Rs. 1.6 million to the Corporation and conferring an unlawful benefit to the UNP.

The two suspects are scheduled to be produced before the Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court, the Bribery Commission said in a statement.