The Colombo High Court has ordered the pre-trial inquiry of the money laundering case filed against Yoshitha Rajapaksa and his grandmother Daisy Forest, regarding an amount of over 59 million rupees to be held on September 28.
This order was given when the case was called before Colombo High Court Judge Rashmi Singappuli.
When the case was called, State Counsel informed the court that the defendants have filed a revision petition before the Supreme Court challenging the further proceedings of the case.
State Counsel also informed the court that the said revision petition is scheduled to be called for support before the Supreme Court on September 4.
Since the relevant proceedings are scheduled to take place before the Supreme Court, the prosecution requested that a date be fixed for the High Court pre-trial inquiry on a subsequent date.
Taking into consideration the facts presented by both parties, the Colombo High Court Judge ordered the pre-trial inquiry to be held on September 28.
This case has been filed under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
According to the indictments, it is accused that during the period from March 31, 2009, to December 12, 2013, an amount exceeding 59 million rupees was deposited in fixed deposit accounts maintained in three private banks. The prosecution has also stated that no satisfactory or clear explanation has been provided regarding how those funds were earned. The prosecution alleges that depositing those funds in accounts during the relevant period was done in a manner that constitutes an offense under Sri Lanka’s laws against money laundering.
Accordingly, the proceedings taking place in the Supreme Court on September 4 are also important regarding the further proceedings of the case against Mr. Yoshitha Rajapaksa and Mrs. Daisy Forest, while the High Court pre-trial inquiry is scheduled to be held on September 28.
By Rekha Nilukshi Hearth