Sri Lankan ex-CEO linked to Airbus bribes found dead

Former SriLankan Airlines CEO Kapila Chandrasena arrives at the Magistrate's Court following his arrest, in Colombo on February 6, 2020. [AFP]

The former chief of Sri Lanka's state-owned airline, who was charged with corruption over the purchase of 10 Airbus aircraft, was found dead on Friday, police said.

Kapila Chandrasena, the former chief executive of SriLankan Airlines, was found at the Colombo home of a relative, said police.

"We are investigating the cause of death and circumstances," a police officer told AFP.

Chandrasena was remanded in March on charges of conspiring to accept a $16 million bribe from Airbus in connection with a $2.3 billion aircraft purchase deal.

Shortly after his arrest, he reportedly told investigators that part of the money had been paid to the country's then president, Mahinda Rajapaksa, and then aviation minister Piyankara Jayaratne.

Rajapaksa, who served as president from 2005 to 2015, and his once-powerful family have been the subject of several high-profile corruption allegations, which they deny and describe as politically motivated.

Chandrasena was released from remand custody on Tuesday.

But a court on Thursday ordered his re-arrest, after prosecutors accused him of bribing two men to post bail.

The bribery commission told the court in March that Chandrasena had admitted to paying Rajapaksa 60 million rupees in 2013, worth around $480,000 at the time, while heading the airline.

The alleged transactions took place as the airline sought to finalise a $2.3 billion deal with Airbus for 10 aircraft, which required approval from Rajapaksa's cabinet.

Chandrasena disclosed the alleged kickbacks in a statement to the commission after his arrest in March.

A spokesman for Rajapaksa denied the allegations.

SriLankan Airlines is saddled with debt, with estimated accumulated losses of 596 billion rupees at the end of March last year. Attempts to sell the airline have so far failed to attract a buyer.

Chandrasena was previously arrested and released on bail in a separate case in 2020.

At the time, the United States, Britain and France named him in a joint investigation into Airbus business deals.

Earlier that year, a French court approved a $4 billion fine to be paid by the European aircraft manufacturer to France, Britain and the United States to settle the probes.

Investigators in Britain accused Airbus of failing to prevent people associated with the company from bribing directors or employees of SriLankan Airlines to "obtain or retain business or advantage".

The US government in December 2024 sanctioned Chandrasena for accepting a bribe from Airbus.