Sri Lanka’s ex-first lady Shiranthi Rajapaksa arrested for fraud
Sri Lanka’s former first lady, Shiranthi Rajapaksa, has been remanded in prison custody by the Colombo Magistrate’s Court over a fraud case.
Ms Rajapaksa, who was arrested on Wednesday over alleged misuse of funds raised for Siriliya Saviya Fund, a children’s hospital she is linked to, is under investigation by Sri Lanka’s Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC).
Ms Rajapaksa was grilled for about two hours on Wednesday over 10 million rupees, equivalent to $30,300, in donations collected by the Siriliya Saviya charity.
The former first lady has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.
Her arrest at her residence on Poorwarama Road, Kirulapone, and her remand in custody came two days after she returned to Sri Lanka from a medical vacation in Singapore.
Before Wednesday, Ms Rajapaksa, 76, had filed a petition to block her arrest. Her husband, Mahinda Rajapaksa, served as president of Sri Lanka for 10 years, from 2005 to 2015.
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