Major Police probe on multi-conspiracy phone tapes | Daily News
Ranjan wanted Gotabaya jailed “even for one hour”:

Major Police probe on multi-conspiracy phone tapes

over 100,000 call tapes found:
Tape reveals call pleading with judge:

The Colombo Crime Division has launched a major investigation into the multiple strands of conspiracy and personal dealings seemingly revealed in the Ranjan Ramanayake recordings.

The massive hoard of audio recordings include telephone conversations between UNP MP and cinema idol Ranjan Ramanayake and numerous people including judges prosecuting major cases, top police investigators, senior politicians, including the former Prime Minister, as well as film actresses.

A key focus of the police probe will be a seeming conspiracy hatched to arrest and imprison Gotabaya Rajapaksa prior to his presidential election victory, possibly to block his assumption of office.

According to police sources, all of this and more is being revealed in the huge collection of audio recordings seized from Ranjan Ramanayake’s official residence in Madiwela. The collection totals over 100,000 call recordings, these sources said. Police sources said that, according to the audio recordings, Ramanayake had discussed this plot to detain Gotabaya Rajapaksa with a magistrate who served in the Colombo courts.

This magistrate, who is now serving in a provincial station, had been hearing several important cases during the past regime such as the elephant ownership, Army intelligence and, the Avant Garde cases.

The case against former Minister A.H.M. Fowzie regarding the misuse of a state vehicle had also been heard by this particular judge, police said. The recordings also reportedly contained a telephone discussion Ramanayake had with the judge regarding the arrest of Fowzie.

According to one of the tapes, Ramanayake had requested the judge to ensure that Gotabaya Rajapaksa was sent to remand prison “at least for one hour” and had promised to worship him (the judge) and render any help he needed if he accomplished it, police disclosed. Apparently, Ramanayaka had told the judge that it was upto the judge to “save the government”.

Police said that the recording further revealed that the judge had told Ramanayake that it was no easy task and since there was no provisions to deny bail he could not send Gotabaya Rajapaksa to remand custody.

According to the recording, the judge had then promised to inform the presiding lady judge in the case and had suggested to Ramanayake that the three of them could discuss the matter through call conferencing even if they could not meet together, police said.

A Police spokesman also disclosed that a discussion Ramanayake had held with a judge at the judge’s official residence was also found in the audio recordings.

 


Police find hard drive

Police yesterday denied leaking of the voice recordings of telephone conversations of MP Ranjan Ramanayake found during the recent search at his Madiwela MP quarters.

Police in a media statement said the items taken into custody on the day of the search were sealed with the finger print mark of MP Ramanayake and that they would be presented to the court at a future date.

Police said an external hard drive containing a large number of voice recordings of MP Ramanayake was handed over to Mirihana Police by a three wheeler driver on January 2. The driver had told the Police that a passenger had forgotten the hard drive in his three wheeler.

The hard drive contained voice recordings of the telephone conversations Ramanayake has had with former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, former CID Chief Shani Abeysekara, retired High Court Judge Padmini Ranawaka, MP Hirunika Premachandra and former CIABOC Director General Dilrukshi Dias Wickremasinghe.

 


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