Lankan police to seek Interpol's aid to nab former diplomat

Sri Lankan police today sought a court order for getting Interpol's assistance to arrest a cousin of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa's, who also served as the country's Ambassador to Russia, for graft charges.

Financial Crimes Division (FCID) of the Lankan police sought the order from the court for assistance from Interpol to arrest Udayanga Weeratunga, former Sri Lankan Ambassador to Russia, on corruption charges.

The Colombo magistrate, however, deferred issuing the ordertill Monday.

Weeratunga, a Ukranian resident faced corruption charges during the purchase of fighter aircraft for the Lankan army, after his cousin Rajapaksa was defeated in presidential elections in January last year.
 

The FCID wanted him in the country for questioning.

Weeratunga has denied all charges levelled against him in a press statement issued recently.

Other members of the Rakapaksa family are also facing police investigations for alleged financial crimes. They include Rajapaksa's brothers Basil and Gotabaya, and his wife Shiranthi.

The Rajapaksas claim that the investigations are a political witch-hunt against them and their sympathisers believe these allegations were brought to tarnish his name after he led Sri Lankan forces to victory over the LTTE rebels in 2009, ending a three-decade civil war.

President Maithripala Sirisena, who came to power on a pledge to eradicate corruption, is under pressure to act on the allegations against Rajapaksa and those who served in his administration.