7 persons, including a lady doctor were arrested for aiding, abetting former minister Rishad Bathiudeen

Seven suspects were arrested by Criminal Investigation Department for aiding and abetting MP Rishad Bathiudeen to hide himself from the police search, said the Police Spokesman DIG Ajith Rohana.

A lady doctor is also among the individuals arrested.

Bathiudeen was arrested by the Criminal Investigations Department at an apartment in Ebenezer Place, Dehiwala Monday morning. Bathiudeen, whose writ application at the Court of Appeal will come for hearing on Tuesday.

Police said that CID will now record a statement and will produce the former minister to the court.

The Fort Magistrate has imposed a travel ban on parliamentarian Rishad Bathiudeen on the request of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).

The CID, upon the direction of the Attorney General, had sought the Colombo Fort Magistrate to issue a warrant to arrest MP Rishad Bathiudeen and the other two suspects on charges of criminal misappropriation of public funds and violation of election laws.

However, the magistrate ruled that the Police can proceed to arrest the suspects without a warrant.

Thereby, Attorney General Dappula de Livera directed the Police to arrest the three suspects according to the law.

Former Minister of Industry and Commerce Rishad Bathiudeen, the director of the project Mohamed Yaseen Samsudeen and the project accountant Alagarathnam Manoranjan are accused of violating Article 82(1) of Presidential Elections Act, No. 15 of 1981 by misappropriating public funds to the tune of Rs. 9.5 million.

They have allegedly misused 222 buses belonging to the state-owned Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) for transporting internally IDPs from Puttalam to polling stations in Silavathurai, Mannar during the 2019 Presidential Election.