The Bribery Commission yesterday (3) informed the Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court that former MP and former Chairman of the National Housing Development Authority Duminda Silva has been named as a suspect in a complaint alleging that a bribe was accepted in connection with securing bail for a large-scale drug trafficker known as “Dematagoda Ruwan”.

The Commission made the submission before Colombo Chief Magistrate Asanga S. Bodaragama while producing in court a suspect arrested over the incident, identified as Mohammed Mohideen Sapras Nawaz.

According to the Bribery Commission, the suspect was produced before court over allegations that a bribe of Rs. 5 million had been accepted in return for facilitating bail for the alleged drug trafficker.

The Commission further stated that the bribe had allegedly been accepted with the knowledge of Duminda Silva during his tenure as Chairman of the National Housing Development Authority.

It was also revealed that another suspect who had allegedly accepted a bribe of Rs. 10 million in relation to the same incident has since died.

After considering the submissions made by the Bribery Commission, Chief Magistrate Bodaragama ordered authorities to conduct further investigations into Duminda Silva, who has been named as a suspect, and report the progress to court.

The suspect produced before court was remanded until 13 March.