Overview

• Wickremesinghe, 76, was taken into custody after CID questioning about a 2023 London stopover linked to his wife's University of Wolverhampton ceremony.
• Police say they are pressing charges for using state resources for personal purposes, while Wickremesinghe maintains no public money was used and that his wife paid her expenses.
• Investigators allege roughly Rs 16.9–17 million in state funds covered travel and security for what they classify as a private visit.
• The visit occurred during a stop in London as he returned from the G77 summit in Havana, according to multiple reports.
• The detention marks the first arrest of a former Sri Lankan president and follows CID interviews of senior aides Saman Ekanayake and Sandra Perera, with further court steps pending.