Foreign Employment Officer Remanded for Rs. 1 Million Korea Job Scam, Implying Ties to Former Minister

 A female officer who worked in the Korean Job Division of the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE), accused of defrauding money by promising jobs in South Korea in collaboration with a coordinating secretary of former Minister of Labour and Foreign Employment Manusha Nanayakkara, was arrested yesterday (27) by the Police Unit of the Bureau's Special Investigations Division.

Preliminary investigations have revealed that the suspect officer, in collaboration with the aforementioned coordinating secretary, promised to secure Korean jobs for three youths from the Galle area in March 2024, entering into agreements with them and collecting ten lakh rupees (Rs. 1,000,000) from each individual.

However, as the promised job opportunities were not provided, the Special Investigations Division initiated these inquiries based on complaints made to the Bureau of Foreign Employment by those who fell victim to the financial fraud.

It has been revealed that the arrested officer is a former Member of the Sri Lanka Youth Parliament and actively supported the political activities of the former minister, and that she obtained her position at the Bureau due to these political connections. It has been confirmed that she carried out this racket after securing the job. The investigation division suspects that there may be more victims of this fraud and requests anyone who has fallen victim to similar scams to immediately inform the Bureau.

After being produced before the Udugama Magistrate's Court in Galle today (27), the suspect officer was ordered by the Magistrate to be remanded until December 09.

Emphasizing that the law will be strictly enforced against foreign employment frauds, regardless of status, Mr. Koshala Wickramasinghe, Chairman of the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment, further urged the public not to fall prey to traffickers who claim they can provide jobs in countries like Israel, Japan, or South Korea, as external parties cannot intervene in such job opportunities.