News
Former FCID Chief’s family linked to money laundering suspects
Former Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) head Senior DIG Ravi Waidyalankara’s wife assumed directorship of a company along with the wife of a key suspect his office was assigned to probe for suspected money laundering, documents filed at the Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court this week show.
Meanwhile, a company owned by his son–Asela Jayampathy Rajasundara Waidyalankara–paid Rs 52mn to buy a flat in Monarch Residencies in Kollupitiya. This is the registered address of Soorya International (Pvt) Ltd. The directors of that entity are Punya Priyanji Menike Edwards and recently retired Waidyalankara’s wife Essala Pathirage Mary Basilica.
Punya Edwards is the wife of Rienzie Mahesh Kumara Edwards who in 2017 was indicted by the US Attorney’s Office along with five others for allegedly defrauding victims of over US$ 50 million. The Sunday Times obtained a copy of the 22-page indictment filed in December 2016 against Rienzi [sic] Edwards, Michael Jacobs, Ruby Handler-Jacobs, F.K. Ho, Lawrence Lester and Rachel Gendreau from the US Attorney’s Office. The indictment alleges that an unspecified percentage of the US$ 50 million the group is alleged to have swindled was sent to bank accounts in Sri Lanka.
Revelations made in court this week by the FCID show a clear connection between details contained in the US indictment and information uncovered in Sri Lanka. Local investigations were started on a complaint filed with FCID that a property belonging to Asiri Central Hospital was bought by Mr. Edwards for Rs 2.6bn at 37, Horton Place, Colombo 7. Bank documents related to the purchase were examined to see how the transaction took place.
It was found that Rs 2.7bn was paid by money order to Asiri Central Hospital (Pvt) Ltd via an account belonging to lawyer Romesh Madduma Bandara Karaliyadda. Mr Edwards also had an agreement with Mr Karaliyadda to receive large payments from abroad to the latter’s account for which he would be paid 0.5 percent of the remittance.
Mr Edwards told the FCID that two persons he befriended in the US told him while visiting Sri Lanka in 2013 that Stanley David Herrera, a local leader of Alamo in New Mexico, was looking for opportunities to invest the taxes collected in his area. The two contacts were named by Mr Edwards as Michael Jacobs and Ruby Handler-Jacobs.
As Sri Lanka’s land prices were anticipated to rise steadily, he proposed that the money be invested in properties here, Mr Edwards told FCID. This was accepted, leading to an agreement in October 2013 between Mr Edwards and Mr Herrera.
Mr Edwards then appointed Mr Karaliyadda the Escrow Agent to manage foreign funds being remitted under the deal. A tripartite agreement to this effect was signed in December that year.
An examination of accounts held by Mr and Mrs Edwards, Mr Karaliyadda and LB Karaliyadda Associates revealed millions of dollars (billions of rupees) in inward remittances from names such as Chang Yau Hung Alexander, Golding Associates, Big Shoe World LLC, John De Here, Jerry M Bond, Yingjun Liang, Ng Chi Man, John Dudley Hare, Mong Wing Nin, Decagon Company Ltd, Ho Mei Mehi Trindy, C T Andy, Irani Mozaad and Carbogen Mining. Foreign funds thus received amounted to US$ 55,084,865.50 and GBP 255,101.22. That is more than Rs 7.24bn. Of this, more than Rs 5.82bn was used to buy property.
The FCID also found that Mr and Mrs Edwards–and, at times, Punya’s sister Jayakody Arachchilage Deepika Hasanji–were directors of multiple companies. The majority of them are registered to 57/2B, Railway Avenue, Nugegoda.
The companies include Edwards Plantation Management (Pvt) Ltd (formed in 2007), Greenfield Consultancy Services Pvt Ltd (2012) and the Mansion Kandy (Pvt) Ltd (2012). Purchases were made in Punya Edwards’s name of four properties in Colombo 7, one in Kandy, three in Harispattuwa, three in Trincomalee, three in Galle, one in Anuradhapura and three in Nuwara Eliya.
Mr Edwards gave the FCID a copy of his wife’s last will and testament which leaves all properties owned by her to US national Stanley David Herrera in the event of her death. The FCID report observes that this is a violation of the Land (Restrictions on Alienation Act) no 38 of 2014.
The FCID found that Mr and Mrs Edwards and Deepika Jayakody were directors of more companies. They include Asha Mansion (Pvt) Ltd (2016), High Rise Property Management (Pvt) Ltd (2015), Tradition Lanka (Pvt) Ltd (2014), Colombo Property Development (Pvt) Ltd (2015), Bond Street Management Services (Pvt) Ltd (2016), Tramwel Consultancy Services (Pvt) Ltd (2016), Edwards Estates Plantation (Pvt) Ltd (2007), Edwards Investment (Pvt) Ltd (2008).
Sooriya International was formed in February 2016, when Senior DIG Waidyalankara still headed the FCID. It is registered to 16/A2 Monarch Residencies, Galle Road Colombo 3 with Mrs Edwards and Mrs Waidyalankara as directors. They held 500 shares each of the company.
As the name of Mary Basilica was unfamiliar to the investigators (not having figured in any of the other companies), they dug into whether the registered address was the property of the company. They then found that an entity named Talos Consulting (Pvt) Ltd bought the flat for Rs 52mn from its previous owner. And the director and sole shareholder of Talos Consulting was 35-year-old Asela Waidyalankara.
US prosecutors have formally asked for documents from their Sri Lankan counterparts so they could proceed with the case. The FCID has, in turn, made its requests.