Colombo, Sri Lanka – Former Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe was arrested on Friday by the country’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in connection with allegations of misusing state funds, according to local media outlet Ada Derana.
Police confirmed Wickremesinghe faces three charges linked to foreign trips he made while serving as president between 2022 and 2024. He was produced before a magistrates’ court in Colombo after giving a statement to CID investigators earlier in the day. Despite seeking bail on health grounds, the 76-year-old was remanded in custody.
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Wickremesinghe, a veteran politician who served six terms as prime minister, assumed the presidency in 2022 after mass protests forced his predecessor Gotabaya Rajapaksa to resign and flee the country. He was credited with stabilizing Sri Lanka’s economy during its worst financial crisis, though he lost the 2024 presidential election to leftist leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake.
According to BBC Sinhala, Wickremesinghe undertook 23 overseas trips during his presidency at a cost of more than Rs 600 million ($2m; £1.4m). His arrest reportedly relates to a 2023 stopover in the UK on his return from a G77 summit in Cuba, where he and his wife attended a University of Wolverhampton ceremony.
Investigators allege the visit was private but funded with public money — an accusation Wickremesinghe has denied. The case was first referred to a Colombo court in June.
Wickremesinghe is the first former president of Sri Lanka to be arrested. A lawyer by profession, he has been a central figure in Sri Lankan politics since entering parliament in 1977. As leader of the United National Party (UNP) since 1994, he introduced reforms to curb corruption within the party and mounted multiple unsuccessful presidential bids before finally assuming office in 2022.
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