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Finance Ministry official interdicted over $2.5M cyber fraud found dead at home - Buzzer
Sponsored An Assistant Director at the External Resources Department of the Finance Ministry, who had been interdicted over the alleged theft of USD 2.5 million by hackers, has reportedly been found dead under suspicious circumstances at his residence in Kuliyapitiya.He was reportedly found dead at his residence in Kuliyapitiya today by relatives who then proceeded to inform the police.Accordingly, police officers have already visited the scene and commenced preliminary investigations. The cause of death is yet to be ascertained as investigations are ongoing to determine whether the death was a suicide, accidental or a homicide. The Ministry of Finance had recently taken steps to suspend the deceased and three other officials in connection with the incident of the misplacement of a payment of USD 2.5 million from Treasury funds, allegedly due to hackers breaching a computer system at the ministry. Meanwhile, it is reported said that the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) had notified the official in question on two occasions to appear before the CID to record a statement regarding this incident.However, he had failed to appear before the CID on either occasion. The CID is currently investigating the missing payment, which had been made as part of a debt settlement linked to a USD 22.9 million loan from the Australian government, after it had not reached its intended recipient and had instead been diverted to hackers. The Ministry of Finance had lodged complaints with relevant law enforcement agencies regarding the cyber breach while Treasury Secretary Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma had stated that investigations revealed the hackers had gained access to the system through email, adding that efforts are underway to recover the funds.
Cause of death revealed of Finance Ministry official interdicted over $2.5M cyber fraud - Buzzer
Sponsored The death of the Assistant Director of the External Resources Department of the Ministry of Finance, who had been interdicted in connection with the alleged misappropriation of USD 2.5 million linked to a cyber heist, has been confirmed as a suicide.Sri Lanka Police said that a panel of Judicial Medical Consultants, appointed to conduct the post-mortem examination on the body of the Assistant Director of the Finance Ministry’s Department of External Resources, concluded that all injuries were self-inflicted and that the death was due to suicide.The official, identified as Ranga Rajapaksa, was found dead at his residence in Kuliyapitiya on Friday (30) by relatives, who subsequently informed the police.According to police, the body was discovered in the garden of the residence after his daughter noticed him lying there and alerted other family members.Police officers who arrived at the scene observed a large bloodstain near a banana tree. Authorities also noted several injuries on the body, including three cuts to one leg and another injury to an arm. A small knife was recovered from the vicinity.Investigations were initially launched treating the incident as a suspicious death, with inquiries conducted to determine whether the death resulted from homicide, suicide, or an accident.Accordingly, the Kuliyapitiya Magistrate visited the scene and conducted a magisterial inquiry on Friday. The body was subsequently transferred to the Kuliyapitiya Teaching Hospital for a post-mortem examination, police said.Meanwhile, the Secretary to the Ministry of Health stated that a panel comprising four Judicial Medical Consultants has been appointed to conduct the post-mortem examination of the Assistant Director of the Department of External Resources, who had been under interdiction over allegations related to the misappropriation of Treasury funds.
4 senior Finance Ministry officials suspended over missing $ 2.5 m Treasury funds - Colombo Times
2 PDMO, 2 ERD officials removed ... COLOMBO The Government has suspended four senior officials of the Ministry of Finance – two from the Public Debt Management Office (PDMO) and two from the External Resources Department (ERD) – pending ...
Sri Lanka discloses another missing payment, days after hackers stole $2.5M from its finance ministry | TechCrunch
Australian officials are reportedly aware of irregularities in payments owed to the country, suggesting that the Sri Lankan thefts could be broader than first thought.
