COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s anti-corruption authorities arrested a former minister from the influential Rajapaksa family on Wednesday.
Shasheendra Rajapaksa, nephew of ex-presidents Mahinda and Gotabaya Rajapaksa, was detained over alleged illegal compensation claims.
The Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) stated he coerced officials into paying for damages on state-owned land.
“He misused state land, claimed compensation he was not entitled to, and committed the offence of corruption,“ CIABOC said in a statement.
This marks the first Rajapaksa arrest since President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s government took office in September 2024.
The government had pledged to investigate corruption linked to the Rajapaksa family’s rule.
Sri Lanka faced its worst economic crisis in 2022, leading to Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s ousting amid mass protests.
Shasheendra’s cousins, Namal and Yoshitha Rajapaksa, are also facing money laundering charges.
Yoshitha claimed funds came from a gem gift, but the elderly relative could not verify the source.
Mahinda Rajapaksa’s brother-in-law, Nishantha Wickramasinghe, was charged for losses at SriLankan Airlines.
Basil Rajapaksa, another brother and former minister, is also embroiled in money laundering allegations. – AFP