The health condition of retired Major General Suresh Sallay, who is currently receiving treatment at the Colombo National Hospital after being arrested in connection with the Easter Sunday attacks, was brought before the Fort Magistrate’s Court today (22).
The court was informed that Sallay had developed swelling of the heart and that a medical device had been fitted to help manage the condition.
The information was contained in a medical report prepared by a nine-member medical panel, which was presented in connection with the case against Sallay and two other suspects over the Easter Sunday attacks.
Additional Solicitor General Dileepa Peiris, appearing for the prosecution, told court that Sallay had been hospitalised for more than 100 days since June 7.
“According to the medical report, the suspect’s heart has become enlarged, and a device has been fitted to control the condition,” Peiris said.
He also told court that Rs. 4 million in public funds had been spent on the device.
During his submissions, Peiris referred to Sallay as “the perpetrator of the Easter attacks”, prompting the Magistrate to immediately intervene.
“He is not a perpetrator yet. He is only a suspect,” the Magistrate said.
Peiris subsequently apologised to court and continued his submissions.
He said the medical report stated that Sallay was currently stable in terms of his cardiac and mental condition and could be discharged once his dental condition was resolved.
“He is now in a general ward. A medical board is scheduled to meet on the 28th to decide whether he should remain in hospital,” Peiris said.
He added that the prosecution was prepared to take full responsibility for Sallay if he was discharged from hospital and handed over to investigators.
“We do not want to subject this suspect to torture. We want him to be punished through the law,” Peiris said.
The prosecution also told court that Sallay had not yet provided passwords for his laptop and mobile phones, despite a court order, and had claimed that he could not remember them.
Appearing for Sallay, President’s Counsel Shavindra Fernando said he had not yet had an opportunity to study the medical report.
On the issue of passwords, Fernando said military intelligence officers follow a procedure of changing their passwords every one or two days to reduce the risk of passwords falling into the hands of others.
He said such officers do not retain passwords for long periods and that Sallay had responded to questions regarding the passwords, but no statement had yet been recorded.
Responding, Peiris said investigators had recorded statements from Sallay on several occasions, both inside and outside the hospital, and that he had consistently said he could not remember the passwords.
He also said the laptop was found in the vehicle at the time of Sallay’s arrest and that Sallay had claimed it belonged to his daughter.
Peiris further told court that several public representatives had made statements about the Easter attacks in and outside Parliament and that he had instructed the Criminal Investigation Department in writing to record statements from them as part of efforts to expedite the investigation.
Fernando subsequently criticised the move, saying investigators were now attempting to rely on statements made by politicians after failing to make progress through their investigations.
Following consideration of the submissions, the Fort Magistrate ordered that a report on the progress of the investigation be submitted to court on October 21.
The case was adjourned until 2 p.m. on October 21. (Newswire)
