SRI LANKA: SEVEN POLICE ARRESTED IN

C O N F I D E N T I A L COLOMBO 000087 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/12/2016 TAGS: PGOV SNAR KCRM CE SUBJECT: SRI LANKA: SEVEN POLICE ARRESTED IN ANTI-CORRUPTION DRIVE Classified By: AMBASSADOR JEFFREY J. LUNSTEAD FOR REASONS 1.4(b) and (d ) ¶1. (SBU) Summary. On December 29, the media reported six police officers were arrested for having links to a drug baron. A seventh officer was arrested on January 3. These arrests appear to be the beginning of a larger-scale effort to clean police corruption, which law enforcement contacts and Transparency Internatuional cite as a pervasive problem. The Department of Justice's International Criminal Investigative Assistance Program (ICITAP) has proved beneficial in this endeavor, but is shutting down due to lack of funding. End summary. -------------- POLICE ARRESTED: CIRCUMSTANCES AND FALL-OUT -------------- ¶2. (SBU) On December 29, local newspapers reported that six Colombo-based police officers between the ranks of Constable and Inspector were arrested for their alleged links to a drug kingpin. One of the officers from the vice branch had been previously charged with bribery as well. A seventh officer was arrested on January 3. According to our police contacts, the officers have been remanded. ¶3. (SBU) On December 29, the Officer in Charge at the Police Narcotics Bureau (PNB) told the Regional Security Office that the arrests were based solely on the testimony of a drug baron, and he felt the arrests had been publicized and blown out of proportion unnecessarily. However, in a December 29 meeting with poloff, an American contractor from the Department of Justice's International Criminal Investigation Training Program (ICITAP) in Colombo said that the indicted officers had allegedly trafficked in heroin and participated in a protection racket with drug dealers. The contractor said that since December 26, the Director of the Police Narcotics Bureau, the Superintendent in charge of Administration in the Narcotics Bureau, and the Assistant Superintendent of Police for Investigations had all been transferred from their positions. The contractor explained that while none of those officers were implicated in the drug charges, they were punitively transferred for failure to recognize or prevent police complicity with drug dealers. The contractor said that no one above the rank of Inspector had ever been convicted of serious crimes in Sri Lanka. He assessed that high ranking police officers had cooperated with drug traffickers, but he was unsure whether they would be charged. -------------- CLEANING UP CORRUPTION, ONE OFFICER AT A TIME -------------- ¶4. (C) In a January 3 meeting with poloff, Sarath Lugoda, head of the Colombo Crimes Division and arresting officer in the police case, estimated that ten percent of the police force was corrupt. He asserted that police, prison officials, and some in the governor's office responsible for testing drugs, had all been complicit in trafficking narcotics. He feared that corrupt officers had learned of his investigation and tipped one another off. Lugoda said that while only seven police had been arrested to date, he would continue his investigation and "go after anyone, irrespective of rank or political affiliation." He added, though, that he needed air-tight evidence before he would jeopardize a police officer's career or reputation. ¶5. (SBU) In a January 9 meeting with poloff, Transparency International, Sri Lanka (TISL) Director J.C. Weliamuna and TISL's Police Project Director Asela Dassanayake discussed their Project on the Integrity of the Police. Weliamuna said that a 2003 South Asia regional public perception survey indicated that the police were seen as the most corrupt body in government. According to Weliamuna, corrupt people viewed police work as a way to make easy, illegitimate money. Both Weliamuna and Dassanayake expressed confidence that Lugoda is making a sincere effort to clean up corruption within the department. However, they added, with a national police force of around 65,000 and low pay scales giving a financial incentive for corruption, they predicted it will be difficult at best to weed out all of the perpetrators. As far as TISL's police project, the two interlocutors said they received good police cooperation in conducting a provider survey, and they will next carry out a public perception survey. TISL expects to analyze the results and provide the Sri Lankan police with recommendations in April. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶6. (SBU) Comment: By all accounts, Lugoda is an honest officer who is making a sincere effort to limit police corruption. However, due to endemic problems, he faces an up-hill battle. By encouraging internal oversight and integrity from the leadership through to the ranks, the ICITAP program has had a positive impact on the Sri Lankan police. Unfortunately, this program is shutting down next month because of lack of funding. TISL may bolster efforts to limit police corruption through its recommendations due in April. In the meantime, it remains to be seen whether those above the rank of Inspector will be caught, indicted, and prosecuted. End comment. LUNSTEAD