A statement from the Rajapaksa camp, accused in the Airbus scandal, regarding Kapila's death

Mr. Sagar Kariyawasam, Secretary of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna and a lawyer representing the party accused in the Airbus deal, stated that strong suspicion arises regarding the sudden death of Mr. Kapila Chandrasena, former CEO of SriLankan Airlines. The Secretary emphasized this while answering questions raised by journalists after a press conference held at the party office, following the discovery of Mr. Chandrasena's body today (08) at a house in the Kollupitiya area.

Mr. Kapila Chandrasena, who was remanded on charges of accepting a two million US dollar bribe in an Airbus aircraft purchase deal, was ordered to be released on bail by the court on May 06. However, considering a request made by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption, the court re-issued an order yesterday (07) to re-arrest him. This re-arrest order was issued based on the fact that the sureties who appeared on behalf of Mr. Chandrasena were fake individuals, and it was stated that there was a risk of him being remanded for several years until the case concludes.

Mr. Sagar Kariyawasam pointed out that there is serious suspicion regarding the individuals who came to provide bail for Mr. Kapila Chandrasena during this series of events. Since it is practically difficult for a person in remand custody to find sureties, he stated that it should be immediately investigated who introduced the two fake sureties to him. The Secretary, suspecting that this could be the result of some conspiracy, also stated that an investigation should be conducted into this matter through the CCTV footage of the court premises.

Mr. Kariyawasam further requested a comprehensive judicial-level investigation to ascertain whether prison officials or officials of the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption were involved in the process of providing these sureties. He also emphasized that there is strong public suspicion, especially regarding how the Bribery Commission suddenly came to know that the relevant sureties were fake individuals.

Meanwhile, a lawyer representing the late Mr. Kapila Chandrasena, speaking to the media, stated that all arrangements had been made to surrender his client to the court via a motion before 10:00 AM today (08), according to the re-arrest order issued by the court. The lawyer further confirmed that he heard about this sudden death while the motion was being filed and his client was due to appear in court, and that another lawyer from his legal team, who is at the scene of the incident, would provide the relevant statements regarding the readiness to surrender to the court.