September 04, Colombo (LNW): The Court of Appeal has temporarily barred law enforcement authorities from arresting a lawyer allegedly linked to an ongoing investigation into a high-profile shooting incident involving a former senior official of the National Lotteries Board.
The interim order was handed down by a two-judge bench, led by Justice Rohantha Abeysooriya and Justice Priyantha Fernando, after reviewing a petition submitted on behalf of the legal professional. The ruling effectively restrains the Colombo Crimes Division from taking the attorney into custody for a period of 14 days, pending further judicial proceedings.
The petitioner was represented in court by President’s Counsel Saliya Pieris, who argued that the proposed arrest lacked a credible legal basis. He told the bench that his client had merely offered legal representation to Thusitha Halloluwa, the former Director of the National Lotteries Board, and had no personal involvement in any alleged wrongdoing related to the shooting incident.
The defence maintained that the attorney had been fulfilling his professional obligations as a legal practitioner and that there was no substantive evidence linking him to the crime under investigation.
The court, upon examining the circumstances and the arguments presented, found sufficient grounds to prevent immediate legal action against the lawyer in question. The restraining order will remain effective for two weeks, during which time the court is expected to further deliberate on the matter.
