The Kegalle Fraud Investigation Bureau has arrested the brother-in-law of Minister K.D. Lal Kantha in connection with an alleged financial fraud involving a vehicle auction.
The suspect is 59 years old. Police allege he defrauded an individual of Rs. 1,145,000 in connection with the auction.
He is scheduled to be produced before the Kegalle Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday.
What has not been established
Police have not alleged any involvement by Minister Lal Kantha, who holds the Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation portfolio. No connection between the minister and the transaction under investigation has been reported.
The Daily Mirror, which reported the arrest on Tuesday evening, did not name the suspect or give further detail on the auction at the centre of the complaint. Further particulars are expected when the case is called.
Lal Kantha, a veteran trade unionist and senior figure in the National People’s Power, has been the subject of unrelated scrutiny over his own asset declarations earlier this year, in which his declared assets were reported at figures the minister publicly disputed.
Sri Lanka’s Fraud Investigation Bureaux operate at divisional level under the police and handle complaints of financial deception, including cases arising from vehicle sales and auctions.
Source: Minister’s brother-in-law arrested over alleged fraud — Daily Mirror, August 11.
