A mysterious fake BMW parked at the Colombo Hilton Hotel has led to a travel ban against former Minister Johnston Fernando. It was discovered that the former minister had attempted to secretly hide an illegally assembled, unregistered BMW in Sri Lanka, avoiding taxes just a few days before the recent Presidential Election. The case against Johnston Fernando was presented at the Fort Magistrate’s Court on October 10th.
At the hearing, the Colombo Magistrate issued a travel ban on Johnston Fernando. The case details were as follows:
CID begins an Investigation based on a tip
The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) received information about a suspicious BMW parked at the Hilton Hotel in Colombo. Acting on the orders of CID Director DIG Rohan Premaratne, the Major Robbery Investigation Division began a special inquiry.
When CID officers arrived at the hotel’s parking lot, they found a black BMW with garage number WP C 24-0430. When they questioned the hotel’s security manager, he explained that the car had been brought there by Gamini Abeyratne (commonly known as “Taxi Abe”), who had been staying at the hotel for a long time. He stated the car was left there just before the last presidential election, with plans for it to be collected later.
Jonny sens the car to “Taxi Abe”
CID officers tracked down Gamini Abeyratne, who revealed that the car belonged to former Minister Johnston Fernando. The car had been delivered to the hotel by Fernando’s driver. When officers requested the car key, it was provided by the hotel’s Food & Beverage Manager on behalf of Fernando.
During their inspection of the BMW, officers found documents belonging to Johnston Fernando but no car registration paperwork. Investigating further, the officers checked the garage number WP C 24-0430 with the Department of Motor Transport, which revealed that the number belonged to a private company based in Nawala.
An illegally assembled, unregistered BMW
The owner of the company was questioned and said he had purchased the number plate in March 2024, but it had been stolen while it was with a private radio company. When officers checked the car’s chassis number (WBA5E52010G115194) through Sri Lanka Customs, they found that no vehicle with that chassis number had been legally imported into the country.
The Government Analyst’s Department confirmed that the car was assembled illegally. The CID reported these findings to the court, accusing Johnston Fernando of importing the car illegally, avoiding taxes, using an unregistered vehicle, and attaching a stolen license plate.
As a result, Colombo Magistrate Thanuja Lakmali imposed a travel ban on Johnston Fernando, as requested by the CID.
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