Yoshitha Rajapaksa granted bail

Yoshitha Rajapaksa, the second son of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who had been remanded in custody, has been granted bail after being produced before the Colombo Magistrate’s Court this morning (27).

Accordingly, he was ordered to be released on two surety bails of Rs. 50 million each by Colombo Additional Magistrate Manjula Rathnayake, following an extended hearing of the facts.

The Additional Magistrate, who also imposed an overseas travel ban on Rajapaksa, ordered the Immigration and Emigration Controller to be informed in this regard.

Meanwhile, Yoshitha Rajapaksa was ordered to appear at the Sri Lanka Police Financial Crimes Investigation Division on the last Sunday of every month, also ordered against the influencing of any witnesses in the case.

The Additional Magistrate, while declaring his decision, ordered that the suspect be released on bail in accordance with the provisions of the Bail Act, as the prosecution has failed to present sufficient and satisfactory evidence to warrant further remand.

On January 25, Yoshitha Rajapaksa was arrested by CID officers in the Beliatta area under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, and produced before Aluthkade No. 5 Additional Magistrate Pavithra Sanjeevani. Accordingly, he was remanded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act until January 27 after being produced before the Colombo Additional Magistrate.

This followed the recording of a statement before the CID.

The arrest came after the Attorney General notified the CID on January 23, stating there was sufficient evidence for Yoshitha Rajapaksa to be named as a respondent in a land case valued at Rs. 34 million.

The case involves Yoshitha’s grandmother, Daisy Forrest Wickremesinghe, also known as ‘Daisy Achchi’, at Sirimal Pedesa in Ratmalana.

The primary suspect in the case, which is still pending, is Daisy Forrest, who is also Yoshitha Rajapaksa’s grandmother.