Sri Lanka Prisons Chief Arrested

Colombo (News 1st); In the latest development, the Commissioner General of Prisons, Thushara Upuldeniya, has been arrested by the CID.

Earlier today, The Cabinet decided to suspend the duties of Commissioner General of Prisons, Thushara Upuldeniya, in connection with the alleged unlawful use of presidential pardons to release inmates.

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has launched an investigation into the incident where an inmate from the Anuradhapura Prison, who had not received a presidential pardon, was released on Vesak Poya Day.

As part of the investigation, the CID has recorded multiple statements from Thushara Upuldeniya regarding the incident.

Meanwhile, Mohan Karunaratne, the Anuradhapura Prison Superintendent who was arrested in connection with the incident, has been remanded until the 11th of this month.

This decision was made when he was presented before Anuradhapura Chief Magistrate Nalaka Sanjeewa Jayasuriya this afternoon.

Presenting the suspect to court, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) stated that a forged document—bearing the signature of the Anuradhapura Prison Superintendent—had been submitted to the Anuradhapura High Court, falsely claiming that a convict in a case heard before the court had been granted a presidential pardon on the recent Vesak Poya day.

Upon reviewing the letter and acting on its contents, the convict was released from the case. However, based on a complaint lodged by the Presidential Secretariat, preliminary investigations led to the arrest of the Prison Superintendent.

Although the Anuradhapura Prison Superintendent had officially informed the Anuradhapura High Court in writing that the convict in case number HC 69/2018 had been released under a presidential pardon on Vesak Poya day, CID officers emphasized that no such pardon had been granted to the individual named Wijekoon Mudiyanselage Athula Tilakaratne by the President on that day.

Accordingly, CID officials suspect that the letter submitted to the High Court by the Anuradhapura Prison Superintendent, claiming the convict had received a presidential pardon, was a forged document.

They further stated that the act appeared to be deliberate and premeditated, and that there may be other suspects involved. A broader investigation is underway to apprehend and present those individuals to court.

The CID also revealed that similar irregularities are being uncovered in other prisons across the country.

The CID requested the court to remand the suspect.

Appearing on behalf of the suspect, Senior Attorney-at-Law Aravinda Habakkala argued that the Prison Superintendent had informed the court in accordance with existing prison department regulations, and that the notification regarding the convict in case HC/69/2018 being released under a presidential pardon was made in good faith and through proper procedure.

He requested that his client be released on any suitable bail conditions.

After considering the submissions from both parties, Chief Magistrate Nalaka Sanjeewa Jayasuriya rejected the bail request and ordered that the suspect be remanded until the 11th of this month.

This problematic situation arose in connection with the release of an individual named Athula Tilakaratne under a presidential pardon on Vesak Day.

The inmate in question, a former branch manager of a well-known financial institution, had been convicted by the court for involvement in a financial fraud amounting to 4 million rupees.

On May 2nd, the Anuradhapura High Court found him guilty and imposed a fine.

The case was scheduled to be recalled on June 4th for the payment of the imposed fine and compensation. However, on that day, Anuradhapura Prison officials submitted a written report to the High Court stating that the convict had been released under a presidential pardon granted on Vesak Poya Day, which fell on May 12th.

At present, the same individual is facing 31 separate court cases related to financial frauds totaling approximately 508.2 million rupees.

Last Friday, the Department of Prisons announced that Wijekoon Mudiyanselage Athula Tilakaratne had been released under the presidential pardon.

However, the Presidential Secretariat clarified last Saturday that the name W.H. Athula Tilakaratne was not included in the official list of individuals approved by the President for pardon.

The Presidential Secretariat lodged a formal complaint with the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), requesting an investigation into the unauthorized release of a prisoner who had not been granted a presidential pardon.

During the course of the investigation, police issued a statement revealing that information had come to light indicating that presidential pardons were misused to release inmates on Vesak Day.

It was also previously discovered that, in similar instances, prisoners who had not received presidential approval were released under the guise of a pardon.

As part of the investigation, the CID recorded statements from the Commissioner General of Prisons, Thushara Upuldeniya, on two separate occasions, totaling approximately 15 hours.