A government official who was suspended from service in connection with a $2.5 million financial fraud has died, sources confirmed. At the time of his death, he was on compulsory leave due to ongoing investigations into the alleged fraud. He had also been banned from traveling abroad two days earlier.
The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption were conducting an extensive investigation into the financial irregularities. There is also suspicion that the death may be a suicide.
Following the death of the official, legal attention has now turned to the future course of the ongoing investigations.
Further details regarding the incident and the cause of death have not yet been officially released. A post-mortem examination is scheduled to be conducted as part of the investigation.
Four senior officials of the Ministry of Finance were suspended in connection with the $2.5 million financial irregularity.
The suspended officials include an Additional Director General and a Director of the Public Debt Management Office (PDMO), as well as a Director and an Assistant Director of the External Resources Department (ERD).
The deceased officer is believed to be one of these four individuals.
The investigation into this major financial fraud is being carried out jointly by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, and the Sri Lanka Computer Emergency Response Team (SLCERT).
In addition, assistance is being sought from international investigative agencies, including authorities in Australia.
