A Development Officer attached to the Niyagama Divisional Secretariat has been arrested today (13) by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC), on suspicion of aiding and abetting the acceptance of a bribe.
The arrest was made following a complaint submitted to CIABOC, which alleged that the officer had assisted in soliciting a bribe linked to a housing grant.
According to the complaint, the complainant had received the first installment of a Rs. 1,000,000 housing assistance grant approved by the National Housing Development Authority (NHDA). Upon receiving Rs. 150,000, the complainant was allegedly told that further assistance in obtaining the remaining amount could be arranged in exchange for a bribe of Rs. 25,000.
The bribe was allegedly taken on behalf of a housing officer attached to the NHDA, who had already been arrested on September 15 in connection with the incident.
The Development Officer is suspected of facilitating that bribe and has now been taken into custody.
He is scheduled to be produced before the Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court.
