Former Director of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) Shani Abeysekara who was recently released on bail, reiterated his innocence in an interview with Al Jazeera.
“The truth will prevail. I am an honest and hardworking officer. In my whole career, I didn’t do any wrongdoing, that’s all I can say,” Abeysekara told Al Jazeera.
Abeysekara had stated that he worked true to his conscience, while treating his duties to enforce the law as sacred.
“As a result, I was forced to stay away from home, away from my family, my children for no reason. That is something I regret,” he said.
He also noted that as a follower of the Buddhist way of life, he does not have hate for anyone and is not ‘angry’.
“People who live according to their conscience find that it’s not hard to face anything. They know that if they do something wrong, they have to face the punishment. I won’t have to face punishment because I have not done any wrong,” he said.
Following Abeysekara’s interdiction from the Police service in January 2020, he was arrested in July of that year on allegations of the fabrication of evidence to frame a false case against former Deputy Inspector General of Police Vaas Gunawardena.
However, the legal representation for Abeysekara has pointed out that no credible evidence has been brought before the Court to substantiate these claims. CID Sub Inspector Sugath Mendis, who initially made the allegations against Abeysekara, later claimed that Colombo Crimes Division (CCD) officers had coerced him into making the statement.
Abeysekara led many high profile investigations during his time in the CID, including that of the murder of the late editor Lasantha Wickrematunge, the disappearance of cartoonist Prageeth Ekneligoda, and the case involving the Navy being implicated in the abduction of 11 youths.