Colombo Fort Magistrate Pasan Amarasena today ordered the issuance of an open warrant against Priyanka Niyomali Wijenayake, wife of former SriLankan Airlines CEO Kapila Chandrasena, in connection with the ongoing investigation into the Airbus transaction.
The order was made after submissions by an officer of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) during the hearing. Since a warrant had already been issued against the second suspect, the CID requested that an open warrant be issued in English, which the Magistrate approved.
At the same hearing, the President’s Counsel appearing on behalf of former cricketer Aravinda de Silva and his wife Priyangi Anushka Wijenayake, who had stood as sureties for Priyanka Niyomali, requested that they be released from their surety obligations as they needed to travel abroad. He also informed the court that the bail money of Rs. 10 million could be confiscated.
The Magistrate, after reviewing the case file, clarified that the bail amount deposited was not Rs. 10 million but Rs. 20 million, and that before confiscation, reasons must be submitted in writing to court.
Accordingly, the Magistrate ordered that the two sureties be released from their obligations and directed that written reasons for confiscating the bail money be submitted to court.
The case is scheduled to be called again on July 22. It was also noted in court that the first suspect in the case, former SriLankan Airlines CEO Kapila Chandrasena, has since passed away. (Newswire)