Bribery Commission files charges against Sajin

Saturday, 21 March 2015 00:52 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption yesterday filed charges against United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) Parliamentarian and former Monitoring MP of the Ministry of External Affairs Sajin de Vass Gunawardena at the Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court under Section 9 of the Declaration of Assets and Liabilities Law.

Gunawardena has been summoned to courts on March 31. In late January the Bribery Commission issued a directive to the Department of Immigration and Emigration (DIE) to seize the passports of Gunawardena and so far he has been barred from leaving the country. The Voice against Corruption organisation, headed by Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) Provincial Councillor Wasantha Samarasinghe, filed a complaint against MP Sajin de Vass Gunawardena in January. Samarasinghe alleged that the former Minister had purchased aircraft under a private company called Cosmos Aviation Service. He also stated that Sajin de Vass Gunawardena had obtained $ 1 million from a local private bank keeping these aircraft as collateral and sent the money to the United States. Prior to the Bribery Commission filing charges against Sajin de Vass Gunawardena, he was questioned by the commission on several occasions.