Court Registrar arrested over former MP’s wife’s bribe to secure husband’s release

The Registrar of the Minuwangoda Magistrate’s Court has been arrested by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) over allegations of aiding and abetting the acceptance of a bribe linked to former Deputy Minister Sarana Gunawardena’s case.

According to CIABOC, the arrest is connected to an investigation into an alleged attempt to secure a suspended prison sentence for Gunawardena.

The investigation earlier led to the arrest of Gunawardena’s wife, Chinari Lakmanthi Hettiarachchi, who is accused of offering Rs. 50,000 to an office assistant attached to the Colombo High Court in an alleged attempt to influence the sentence imposed on her husband. She was subsequently remanded until Oct. 6 by the Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court.

Investigators previously told court that messages recovered from the office assistant’s mobile phone allegedly contained communications relating to the arrangement and records linked to the transfer of money.

The latest arrest expands the investigation, with the Minuwangoda Magistrate’s Court Registrar now accused of aiding and abetting the acceptance of the alleged bribe, according to CIABOC.

The bribery investigation is linked to corruption proceedings against Gunawardena, a former deputy minister.

In June, the Colombo High Court sentenced Gunawardena to an effective 16 years of rigorous imprisonment after convicting him in four corruption cases relating to the procurement of vehicles on a rental basis while he headed the Development Lotteries Board in 2006. The court also imposed fines totalling Rs. 1.8 million.

The charges alleged that the vehicle rental arrangements caused losses to the state while providing undue benefits to vehicle owners.

CIABOC is continuing investigations into the alleged bribery attempt. (Newswire)

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