The Police on Friday (1) clarified earlier statements regarding the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) summons issued to External Resources Department (ERD) Assistant Director Ranga Nishantha, who was found dead in Kuliyapitiya. 

Initial comments to the media by Acting Police Spokesperson SSP Minura Senarath suggested that Nishantha had failed to respond to a CID summons, raising concerns over a lack of cooperation. 

However, Senarath later clarified that the issue stemmed from delays in appearing on scheduled dates rather than non-compliance. 

“He had not appeared on the exact dates he was summoned. For example, if asked to appear on 1 April, he would come on 3 April. However, he provided statements on three occasions and handed over his equipment to the CID,” Senarath said. 

Nishantha, who had been suspended in connection with an alleged cyber fraud involving the diversion of $ 2.5 million from the Treasury, was found dead behind his residence on Thursday (30 April). Police said he had gone to the rear of his house at around 10 a.m., and his body was discovered at approximately 2 p.m. 

Meanwhile, the circumstances surrounding the death remain under investigation. The Police initially indicated that the death appeared to be a suicide, stating that he had caused fatal injuries to his arteries. However, speaking on Friday, Senarath said the cause of death had not been conclusively determined, noting that it “could be a suicide or due to another reason”. 

A panel of four judicial medical consultants has been appointed to conduct the post-mortem examination, which was carried out on Friday at the Teaching Hospital, Kuliyapitiya. 

Nishantha had been interdicted along with several other senior Finance Ministry officials pending a disciplinary inquiry into the cyber fraud incident, which involved funds earmarked for an external debt repayment to an Australian creditor. The suspended officials included a Director and an Assistant Director from the ERD, as well as a Director and an Additional Director General from the Public Debt Management Office (PDMO).