Overview

• Wickremesinghe was released on a five-million-rupee bond after joining the hearing by video from the ICU at Colombo National Hospital.
• Authorities accuse him of spending about LKR 16.6 million on accommodation, vehicles and security for the UK detour, with records allegedly altered to make the trip appear official.
• Defense counsel maintains the visit was official and submitted medical reports indicating three of his four coronary arteries are blocked.
• Hundreds of supporters protested near the Colombo Fort Magistrate’s Court under tight security, while the government denied opposition claims of a political witch hunt.
• The arrest, the first of a former Sri Lankan head of state, comes within President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s anti-corruption campaign that has ensnared multiple former officials.