The Free Lawyers’ Association has accused the Parliamentary Committee on Public Finance (CoPF) of having failed to identify those responsible for the controversial Treasury-linked cyber fraud involving nearly US$ 2.5 million diverted from a Government payment linked to an Australian bilateral transaction, and instead blaming lower-level officials and “soulless computers”.
Issuing a statement yesterday (10), the Association claimed the CoPF report had failed to identify those responsible for the incident and instead blamed lower-level officials and “soulless computers”.
The Association further alleged that the report had given the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) and Treasury officials a month to “find excuses and prepare documents”.
It was charged that the eight-page report had failed to provide constructive observations, recommendations or proposals despite the powers vested in the Committee under Standing Order 121 of Parliament. “The report is only a facts report and the CoPF has abdicated its constitutional responsibility.”
The Association questioned how such a large-scale Treasury-related fraud, described as the first of its kind in Sri Lanka’s history, had taken place and whether it could have been prevented.
The statement alleged the report relied heavily on facts presented by the Treasury in its own defence and had provided an opportunity for those truly responsible to avoid accountability.
The Free Lawyers’ Association also alleged the CBSL’s Governing Board had remained silent on the incident for nearly a month and questioned whether any internal or external investigations had been conducted to identify those responsible.
The statement further pointed to weaknesses in coordination between Treasury institutions, noting that separate computer systems had been maintained independently by the Department of External Resources, the Public Debt Management Office as well as the Treasury.
The Association claimed that the CoPF had failed to fulfil its broader responsibilities beyond “reporting facts” after a major financial disaster.
President’s Counsel Maithri Gunaratne, attorney Athula de Silva and former Governor Rajith Keerthi Tennakoon signed the statement on behalf of the Free Lawyers’ Association.
The alleged cyber fraud involving nearly US$ 2.5 million diverted from a Government payment linked to a bilateral transaction with Australia has drawn significant public attention in recent weeks. The incident, which occurred in early 2026, involved funds intended for transfer to an Australian creditor being diverted after email communications linked to the payment were allegedly interfered with by cyber actors. Although the payment had been processed through official systems, the intended recipient had not received the funds.