The Colombo Magistrate’s Court today granted bail to suspended Prisons Commissioner General Thushara Upuldeniya, who was arrested and remanded over the alleged unlawful release of an inmate under a presidential pardon.
Upuldeniya was suspended from duties per a Cabinet decision, pending a probe into the unlawful release of a convicted banker under a presidential pardon on Vesak Poya this year.
During previous proceedings, the court was informed by the Attorney General’s Department that Upuldeniya had unlawfully released Athula Thilakarathna under a Presidential pardon, despite him not being on the official Vesak pardon list.
The court was also informed that Upuldeniya is alleged to have bypassed legal procedures and operated the department like a “private empire”.
Preliminary investigations have found that over 60 inmates may have been released illegally using the Presidential Pardon system. (Newswire)
