Sri Lanka’s former President Ranil Wickremesinghe arrested over state funds misuse
Sri Lanka’s former President Ranil Wickremesinghe arrested over state funds misuse
Digital Desk: Ranil Wickremesinghe, the former president of Sri Lanka and six-time president, was arrested on Friday, August 22, 2025, on suspicion of using public funds for a private vacation overseas while in office.
A senior official told the Hindu, "He will be produced before the Colombo Fort magistrate today."
His arrest for alleged misappropriation of public funds was confirmed by the police.
Following widespread protests triggered by an economic collapse, former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa resigned, and Mr. Wickremesinghe was elected President in July 2022 in an emergency parliamentary vote.
In connection with his international travels during his presidency, he is facing three charges.
Wickremesinghe made a statement to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) earlier in the day before arriving at the magistrates' court in the capital city of Colombo on Friday.
The 76-year-old traveled abroad 23 times while serving as president, spending over Rs 600 million ($2 million; £1.4 million), according to BBC Sinhala.
According to news agency AFP, Wickremesinghe was arrested on Friday in connection with a 2023 stopover in the UK while returning from a G77 summit in Cuba.
He and his spouse had gone to a ceremony at the University of Wolverhampton on that particular occasion.
Wickremesinghe has refuted claims made by Sri Lanka's CID that he was on a private visit funded by public funds. In June, their investigation was first sent to a court for review.
Wickremesinghe, who was born into a well-known family of politicians and businessmen with significant media interests, was appointed the youngest cabinet minister of the nation in 1978 at the age of 29 by his uncle, President Junius Jayewardene.
