Yoshitha’s impending ‘House’ arrest

Apr 11, 2016

Following the money laundering charges filed against Yoshitha Rajapaksa over his alleged involvement in Carlton Sports Network (CSN) investment, the Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) has commenced two fresh probes into the ownership of two palatial houses in Dehiwala worth over several hundreds of millions of rupees and the Carlton Sports Network (CSN) building in Battaramulla worth around Rs. 200 million.

The property at 173/2, Mihindu Mawatha, Dehiwala is said to be 66 perches in extent out of which 38 perches are owned by Yoshith Rajapaksa and 28 perches by Daisy Forest of 210/12, Torrington Avenue, Colombo 05.

It is alleged that Daisy Forest is an aunt of Shiranthi Rajapaksa and the Torrington Avenue, Colombo 5 property in which she resides is owned by the former First Lady. Although the Rajapaksas have claimed that CSN is not owned by Yoshitha or has any connection to the Rajapaksa family, not only CSN but also Carlton Pre-School, Carlton Sports Club, Tharunyata Hetak and even the controversial non-governmental organisation Siriliya, which too is under investigation by the FCID for financial fraud, are registered under the Torrington Avenue Colombo 5 address.

This property in Colombo 5 was originally owned by Prabath Nanayakkara. After Mahinda Rajapaksa became President in 2005, this property had been bought over by Mary Laud Wickremasinghe alias Shiranthi Rajapaksa bearing National Identity Card No: 535233314V on April 5, 2013 for Rs. 35 million.

According to a reliable FCID informant, the FCID officials together with government valuers from the Valuation Department had inspected the CSN building at Denzil Kobbekaduwa Mawatha, Battaramulla early this month which is said to be worth over Rs. 200 million.

In regard to the two houses in Dehiwala, which are alleged to be owned by the Rajapaksas, the FCID had obtained a search warrant from the Mt. Lavania Magistrate (Warrant No. 828/16) and had conducted a search a few weeks ago.

“The two-storeyed house at Mihindu Mawatha is still under construction and carries a name board ‘Madam Shiranthi Wickremasinghe Rajapaksa’. It is said that the 60 perches had cost the Rajapaksas Rs. 49.02 million while another five perch land belonging to the Dehiwala-Mt. Lavinia Multi-Purpose Cooperative Society had been sold to the Rajapaksas for Rs. 4.5 million,” sources said.

When this newspaper contacted the Dehiwala-Mt. Lavinia Multi-Purpose Cooperative Society at Nugegoda to find out how much they had received from the Rajapaksas for the five perch land, the lady officer who answered the call said that she could not make any comment but to call one hour later to speak to their General Manager from whom all these details could be obtained.

“Madam has gone out and will be back in one hour’s time. She will be able to furnish all the details you want,” she said. However all attempts thereafter to contact the General Manager were futile as no one answered the call.

According to sources, an underground apartment similar to the underground bunker at the Presidents House in Fort, which was also built for the Rajapaksa offspring, had been built at the four-storeyed house believed to be used as an armoury.

“The government valuers are yet to conduct a valuation of these two buildings but it appears that both houses are worth not less than Rs. 1,000 million as they are equipped with all the luxurious facilities and comforts,” sources claimed.

Meanwhile, questions have been raised as to how Yoshitha Rajapaksa who is a public servant that draws a government salary could accumulate such a large wealth unless he has won a huge jackpot.

“The FCID will investigate how a Navy Lieutenant could spend such an amount of money to purchase a land and to build luxurious palaces worth several millions of rupees. Our records do not show that Rajapaksa had ever won a jackpot, nor any other fortune. If so he has to inherit an enormous wealth from his parents. That too is ruled out as both Mahinda and Shiranthi Rajapaksa were not so rich when the former entered politics in the early 1970s. The FCID can check their wealth at the time Mahinda Rajapaksa entered politics and their wealth now to ascertain the difference,” sources claimed.

Meanwhile it is learnt that these houses were built for Yoshitha Rajapaksa to live after his marriage to a former girlfriend. “They were to be married but for some reasons it did not take place. It is up to the FCID to question this particular friend and they would be able to get more details about this property and how the Rajapaksas bought it,” sources added.

Further, the FCID is to investigate who funded the CSN building at Battaramulla which was given by the Urban Development Board (UDB) on a lease to the D. A. Rajapaksa Foundation.

“FCID, after an investigation on the controversial CSN under the Money Laundering Act, has unearthed how the D. A. Rajapaksa Foundation has breached the agreement reached with the UDA when obtaining the state-owned land, where the CSN building is now situated. Although this land had been given on condition, that it should not be used for any purpose other than for the D. A. Rajapaksa Foundation, the building in question had been constructed to house the CSN TV network in 2010, and it is alleged that after the fall of the Rajapaksa regime on January 8, a lease agreement has been signed by the Rajapaksa Foundation with CSN hurriedly, to show that this land had been taken over legally from the Foundation. Although the government valuers have valued this building at Rs. 200 million, they are yet to submit the accounts as to how they obtained the money. Chief Executive Officer of the Rajapaksa Foundation, Upul Dissanayake, had said that the money had been given by W. Karunajeewa, the former Chairman, People’s Bank whose daughter-in-law was one of the Directors at CSN.”

According to the sources, in the event the Rajapaksa offspring fails to explain how he amassed wealth which runs into several hundreds of millions of rupees to purchase the Dehiwala land at Mihindu Mawatha and to build the two palatial luxury houses, and also to construct the CSN office building at Denzil Kobbekaduwa Mawatha, Battaramulla, the FCID is once again planning to charge him under the Money Laundering Act which he was earlier charged under and placed under arrest for more than one month for his failure to reveal who invested in CSN. 
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