Two suspects — including a security officer employed at the Department of Motor Traffic (DMT) — have been arrested in connection with a forged driving licence racket operating from the DMT office in Werahera, police said on Thursday.
The suspects, aged 34 and 28, are residents of Homagama and Bulathkohupitiya. A special operations unit took them into custody after receiving information that applicants visiting Werahera were being offered fraudulent licences for a fee.
An undercover officer posing as a customer arranged to purchase a licence for Rs. 10,000, leading to the arrest of the main suspect. A follow-up investigation produced the second arrest: a DMT security officer who was found in possession of nine official security stickers used in the licence-issuance process.
The case marks the second insider-corruption bust at a government transport-related office this week and comes as the DMT grapples with a surge in vehicle registration delays stemming from the lifting of the vehicle import ban. Driving licences issued by the DMT are the only recognised form of driving authorisation in Sri Lanka and carry embedded security features precisely to guard against forgery.
Further investigations are continuing to identify how many fraudulent licences may have been issued and whether other DMT staff were involved.
