Ontax DT 800 crores cannot be found - revealed in court

The Attorney General yesterday (09) revealed to the court that over 800 crore rupees belonging to depositors of the illegal pyramid scheme financial institution named 'Ontax DT' have been defrauded by the suspect directors of that institution, or that these funds have been converted into untraceable assets. Colombo Chief Magistrate Asanga S.

This statement was made before Mr. Bodaragama when the relevant case was called.

Government Counsel Mr. Oswald Perera, presenting facts regarding the incident, pointed out that although it appears over 1100 crore rupees have been deposited according to complaints made by the public regarding this financial fraud, the Criminal Investigation Department has so far only traced assets worth approximately 260 crore rupees. The Government Counsel also emphasized that although the suspect directors have stated their readiness to repay the depositors' money, they must explain to the court how they intend to settle the over 800 crore rupees that have not yet been traced.

When the case was called, a group of suspect directors, including Athula Indika, Gayashan Abeyratne, Sampath Sandaruwan, and Saranga Randika, who had been released on bail, appeared before the court. However, as information has been reported that the suspect named Kakaber Aslan Ismat, who is said to be involved in this racket, is currently residing in Georgia, the Chief Magistrate ordered the re-issuance of a warrant for his arrest.

So far, 20,931 complaints regarding this financial fraud have been received by police stations across the island, and according to these complaints, the total amount defrauded is estimated to exceed 11 billion rupees. However, the Criminal Investigation Department has only been able to uncover assets worth approximately 2.6 billion rupees to date, and no information has yet been revealed regarding over 840 crore rupees.

31 lands belonging to the relevant financial company have been frozen by order of the Colombo High Court, and the Central Bank of Sri Lanka has taken steps to suspend the 'Binance' accounts belonging to the suspects. Here, the Magistrate questioned the procedure for confiscating digital currency (Cryptocurrency) operated by the suspects online, and in response, the Government Counsel stated that the Central Bank is working to open a separate Binance account for the government and credit the relevant funds to it.

The Magistrate, pointing out that this is the first instance in Sri Lanka where digital currency is confiscated and transferred to a government account, emphasized that this process must be carried out legally and transparently under the supervision of the Ministry of Finance and the General Treasury. The Magistrate also instructed the relevant departments to expedite these activities.

Lawyers appearing for the aggrieved depositors stated before the court that lower-level officials and promoters who contributed to promoting this racket have not yet been arrested. Furthermore, President's Counsel Mr. Upul Kumarapperuma drew the court's attention to the fact that the suspect directors possess luxury vehicles such as Rolls Royce and BMW.

Considering the facts presented, the Magistrate ordered the Criminal Investigation Department to immediately name and arrest any second-tier directors or promoters involved in this racket. The Chief Magistrate further ordered that investigations be expedited and that progress be reported to the court on July 31st.