Govt. requests to seize eight accounts of former government members in Dubai bank

Friday, 16 October 2015 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Government has requested the suspension of eight bank accounts held by senior members of the former government in a Dubai bank, Cabinet Spokesman Minister Rajitha Senaratne said at the press briefing on Thursday.

He said the investigations have found eight bank accounts in a Dubai bank belonging to powerful people of the previous government and plans are underway to seize all the accounts.

Senaratne, without revealing who the account holders are, said that further investigations are proceeding on these accounts found in the National Bank of Dubai.

He said the government knows who the account holders are but will not reveal until the investigations are complete.

“We have come to an agreement with Dubai not to discuss this matter in public as reports published in Sri Lanka are having an impact on the investigations,” he said adding that the government has taken necessary actions.

According to the Minister, one account holds about US$1.086 billion and another holds US$ 1.8 billion while a third account holds over US$ 500 million. The spokesman further said that according to the US investigation team assisting Sri Lanka in the investigations, every transaction in those accounts can be tracked down since they are dollar transactions.