Less than a year after Mahinda Rajapaksa assumed the presidency, a financial fraud of approximately USD 7 million was committed through the procurement of MiG aircraft. Later, during the second term of that administration, multi-million dollar financial frauds took place surrounding the Airbus deal. Similarly, within less than 45 days of forming the Ranil-Maithri coalition government, the Central Bank bond scam was executed.
During the regimes led by the Rajapaksas and Ranil Wickremesinghe, these financial crimes were suppressed as key figures shielded one another. However, official investigations and judicial proceedings regarding these financial crimes have now been initiated.
Journalist Lasantha Wickrematunge was assassinated after uncovering details regarding the MiG aircraft financial fraud. In 2013, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) worth USD 2,300 million was signed to purchase Airbus aircraft for SriLankan Airlines, with reports indicating plans to execute financial frauds exceeding USD 1,000 million. During Ranil Wickremesinghe’s tenure as Prime Minister, under the guise of paying over USD 200 million in compensation to cancel the deal, further financial crimes were committed. Journalist Rajeev Jayaweera, who exposed information regarding these transactions, died under mysterious circumstances at Independence Square (Torrington), while Kapila Chandrasena, who gave a statement regarding the relevant details, also passed away mysteriously.
