July 01, Colombo (LNW): Nishantha Wickramasinghe, the former Chairman of SriLankan Airlines, has been ordered to remain in custody until July 15 as investigations into multiple corruption allegations continue. The decision was handed down by Colombo Chief Magistrate Thanuja Lakmali following his appearance in court today (01).
Wickramasinghe, who was arrested by officials from the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC), was brought before the magistrate under tight security. During the proceedings, both the prosecution and defence presented their arguments, after which the magistrate ruled that the former airline chief should be further remanded.
The court has also instructed CIABOC to finalise its inquiries and present a comprehensive report at the next hearing. The investigative body maintains that Wickramasinghe’s arrest is tied to a broader inquiry into misconduct during his tenure at the helm of the national carrier.
The allegations levelled against him span a number of incidents from 2014, each suggesting an abuse of authority and misappropriation of state resources. These include altering a scheduled flight route in January 2014, purportedly causing a loss of over US$ 4,500 to the government; removing dozens of transit passengers from another flight later that month, allegedly incurring an additional US$ 19,160 in losses; and the alleged use of public funds totalling LKR 1.25 million in support of a political campaign held in December that same year.
Wickramasinghe was initially detained on June 27 in the Nawala area. This is not the first time his name has surfaced in relation to questionable decisions taken during his leadership at the airline, but this marks a significant escalation as the inquiry moves through the legal system.
