Son of Former President Arrested, Implicated in Corruption Case

Namal Rajapaksa, the son of former Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, has been arrested over alleged corruption related to the purchase of Airbus aircraft by the national carrier, SriLankan Airlines. A Sri Lankan high court has ordered the opposition politician to be detained until 18 September.

According to Reuters, Namal was arrested after undergoing more than five hours of questioning by the Commission of Investigation into Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC). The detention order for the Member of Parliament from the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna party was issued by Colombo Chief Judge Asanga S. Bodaragama.

Namal has consistently denied any wrongdoing in the case. As of the time of publication, his lawyers have not provided a comment regarding the arrest.

The case is part of an investigation into the 2013 purchase of aircraft from the European manufacturer Airbus, involving transactions worth millions of US dollars. The investigation has been reactivated, and an Airbus delegation is known to have travelled to Colombo in August to assist with the examination process.

The matter is also linked to an international investigation into Airbus regarding allegations of bribery and corruption in jet sales. In 2020, Airbus reached a settlement with authorities in France, the United Kingdom, and the United States to resolve the matter by paying fines totalling US$4 billion, or approximately Rp70.4 trillion.

Namal’s arrest adds further scrutiny to the Rajapaksa family, which has been one of Sri Lanka’s primary political forces for many years. Namal is currently caught in the middle of legal proceedings as the government and anti-corruption agencies expand their investigation into transactions related to SriLankan Airlines.

Meanwhile, SriLankan Airlines and Airbus have yet to respond to requests for comment regarding the arrest or the ongoing investigation.