Former First Lady Shiranthi Rajapaksa unexpectedly departed for Singapore after being summoned by the Police Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) to record a statement regarding the controversial ‘Siriliya Saviya’ bank account.
Although it was subsequently claimed that her sudden departure was for urgent medical treatment, photos surfaced on social media showing her engaging in shopping rather than seeking medical care.
Financial crime investigations into Shiranthi Rajapaksa had been initiated as early as June 2015. Below is an excerpt from a report published by BBC Sinhala regarding those proceedings:
Shiranthi Rajapaksa Questioned at Speaker’s Official Residence
(BBC Sinhala | June 01, 2015)
The Police Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) questioned Shiranthi Rajapaksa, wife of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, on June 01, 2015.
Former President’s Media Spokesperson Rohan Weliwita confirmed to the BBC at the time that the session had been concluded.
The interrogation focused on the ‘Siriliya Saviya’ bank account operated under her name.
The former First Lady was questioned regarding a complaint alleging suspicious transactions involving tens of millions of rupees deposited from multiple bank branches into the ‘Siriliya Saviya’ account maintained at the Suduwella branch of People’s Bank in Maradana.
The complaining party also highlighted that a fake national identity card (NIC) number had been provided to open the account.
While numerous journalists gathered outside the FCID headquarters expecting the interrogation to take place there, reports confirmed that the session was instead conducted at the Speaker’s official residence, citing security reasons.
Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa accompanied his wife when she arrived at the Speaker’s official residence to answer the police queries.
