Former Minister Johnston Fernando and Four Others Remanded Until April 2nd

COLOMBO(News 1st); Former Minister Johnston Fernando, his two sons, and two other suspects have been further remanded until the 2nd of April.

The order was issued by the Acting Magistrate of Wattala Eranga Sirisena after the suspects were produced before the court via Zoom.

The case follows an investigation by the Police Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) into a complaint filed in 2015.

Investigations revealed that the suspects had obtained an excise license under the name of a company registered at a address in Colombo under former MP Vijayakala Maheswaran. 

Although the license was purportedly for the production of fragrances and cleaning agents, it was allegedly used to purchase 100,000 liters of ethanol for unauthorized purposes.

The suspects face charges of misappropriating state property, specifically regarding the use of a Sathosa lorry to transport 40,000 liters of ethanol to an undisclosed location on three separate occasions.