The Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) has decided to launch a broad inquiry into the assets of senior officers in the Police and the tri-forces, the state owned Silumina newspaper reported.
According to the report, the initial phase will involve reviewing the asset declarations and records of top-ranking officials in the Police, Army, Navy and Air Force, before expanding the investigation to lower-ranking officers.
CIABOC is also planning to examine the asset files of officers attached to the Prisons Department, Sri Lanka Customs, and the Department of Immigration and Emigration at a later stage.
Given the large scope of the inquiry, the commission is considering recruiting additional staff on a contractual basis, as existing personnel are insufficient to handle the workload. Internal discussions on this recruitment process are said to be underway.
The decision follows reports indicating close connections between certain law-enforcement and defence officials and organised criminal groups. Internal investigations into some senior officers allegedly linked to such networks have already commenced, according to the newspaper.
