Singapore rejects SL President’s claims on harbouring Mahendran

Singapore today rejected Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena’s allegation it was sheltering a former central bank chief who was wanted for fraud, saying Colombo failed to provide documents to support its extradition request, AFP reported   

SL’s request “lacked certain information” under Singapore´s extradition laws

 President Sirisena said he appealed to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in January to return Mahendran, who is believed to be in Singapore, but claimed nothing had been done. A spokesperson for Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said authorities in the city-state have been cooperating with their Sri Lankan counterparts on the case since January.   
However, Sri Lanka’s request to return Mahendran “lacked certain information required under Singapore´s extradition laws” and the city-state has requested Colombo to provide them, the spokesperson told AFP.   

“To date, Singapore has not received the requested supporting information and documents as yet. We look forward to receiving the requested information from Sri Lanka, so that we can consider the request further in accordance with our laws,” the spokesperson said.   

Singapore can extradite fugitives to declared Commonwealth countries, which includes Sri Lanka.   

In February last year, Mahendran was named a key suspect in the multi-million Dollar bond scam in Sri Lanka and fled abroad, failing to appear in court to respond to charges. A damning presidential report into the scandal accused Mahendran of insider trading and recommended the state recover its losses from Mahendran and his son-in-law.   

Sri Lanka’s central bank also launched a forensic audit to ascertain the extent of insider trading during Mahendran’s tenure at the bank.