Officers of the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC), the police and the Police Special Task Force jointly searched the Mount Lavinia home of Sanje Samarasinghe, personal secretary to remanded MP Namal Rajapaksa, through the night.
The account comes from Attorney Manoj Gamage, media spokesman for former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, as reported by Hiru News.
Gamage said the search began at about 10.30pm on Friday (16) and continued until roughly 4.30am on Saturday (17) — close to six hours. Officers examined the entire house and recorded statements, he said.
No agency has said why
On Gamage’s own account, the institutions involved have not given a reason for the search and have not released further information officially. He said more details were expected to be disclosed by midday.
That leaves the only public account of the operation coming from the lawyer for the family of the man whose secretary was searched. Neither CIABOC nor the police has independently confirmed the search, its scope, or its purpose, and no filing this desk can reach names the case it belongs to.
This matters because Rajapaksa is currently a suspect in more than one matter before more than one court. The Krrish bribery case over Rs. 70 million sits before the Colombo Chief Magistrate; a separate Airbus money laundering investigation was reported complete on 14 October with proceedings set for 18 November; and he was indicted in the Airbus bribery matter on 13 October. The filing attaches the search to none of them, and this article does not assume one.
The Special Task Force’s presence is the unusual element
A CIABOC search carried out alongside the Special Task Force — a paramilitary police unit — is not the ordinary shape of a bribery-commission document search. No filing explains the STF’s role, whether it was providing security or acting operationally, or who authorised the joint deployment.
Where Rajapaksa’s custody stands
Hiru describes Rajapaksa as remanded as of Saturday morning. This desk reported on 6 October that the Chief Magistrate had extended his remand in the Krrish case to 16 October and fixed the bail ruling for that same day — meaning Friday was the day his release was to be decided.
No filing this desk has seen reports the outcome of that ruling. Hiru’s description of him as still remanded on Saturday indicates he was not released, but the filing does not say so directly and no outlet has reported the decision itself. That remains open.
Not to be confused
Searches of the archive for “Samarasinghe” return several unrelated people in unconnected matters. Sanje Samarasinghe has not previously appeared in this desk’s coverage, and nothing here connects him to any other individual of that surname.
Gamage, by contrast, is a recurring figure — he has spoken for the Rajapaksa family through Shiranthi Rajapaksa’s arrest by CIABOC on 7 October and earlier matters.
Sourcing note
This is a single-source report. The search ended at about 4.30am Colombo time and Hiru filed shortly after 7am; no other verified newsroom had covered it at the time of writing. This article will be updated as other outlets file and if the agencies make a statement.
