VAT suspects further remanded
Sarath Malalasekera
COLOMBO: Five suspects in the massive VAT scam at the Inland
Revenue Department were further remanded till October 3 by Colombo Fort
Magistrate and Additional District Judge Namal Bandara Balalle
yesterday.
Two suspects in the alleged fraud were granted bail earlier by the
Colombo High Court.
The Criminal Investigations Department yesterday told court that they
have forwarded a dossier of the investigations into the VAT scam to the
Attorney General for his advice.
The CID told court that they are making arrangements to obtain the
assistance of Interpol in connection with the suspects who had left the
country and are now living abroad.
The suspects are Gnanasiri Soysa Jayatilleke, Senior officer attached
to the Inland Revenue Department, Colombo businessman Sinnaiah
Subramanaiam, Mohamed Hussain, Mohamed Milshan, A. W. Ambepitiya of the
Inland revenue Department and businessman Ashrof Hadjir.
The CID commenced investigations on a complaint by the Inland Revenue
Department based on a report submitted to the Inland Revenue Department
by the Auditor-General in connection with the criminal misappropriation
of Rs. 35,772,868 the money accruing from VAT.
The CID told court that they have perused the forged documents
forwarded to the Inland Revenue Department to release the VAT money from
the department.
The investigations also revealed that the senior officer of the
Inland Revenue Department had authorised the VAT money to be released to
the businessmen without perusing the relevant documents.
The money had been obtained from the Inland Revenue Department on
several forged national identity cards. Twenty NICs have been submitted
to the Inland Revenue Department but 19 of them were forged, the
investigators said.
President’s Counsel M.L.M. Ameen, President’s Counsel Mohan Peiris,
Kalinga Indatissa, Shanaka Ransinghe, K.V. Thavarasa, Nishada Gamage, M.
Biswa, Shiraz Noordeen and Prasanna Weerasekera appeared for the
suspects. |