TWO top personalities in Sri Lanka’s travel trade were arrested on Tuesday by police over alleged fraud charges.
They were subsequently remanded by a Sri Lankan court before being escorted to a prison bus.
Nilmin Nanayakkara, chairman of Nkar Travels, one of Sri Lanka’s biggest travel agencies, and Mervyn Fernandopulle, chairman of Airwing Tours were detained over alleged fraud charges while serving as directors of a state tourism agency, police said. They are being remanded until August 25.
Nanayakkara, a widely-respected tourism expert, is a former president of the Sri Lanka Association of Inbound Tour Operators, the main industry body that represents travel agents in the country. Fernandopulle, an industry veteran, is founder president of the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises in Tourism.
The arrest sent shockwaves across the tourism community. Police said the accused were charged with channelling state funds amounting 5.7 million rupees (US$39,000) for election work of the then ruling regime in September 2014. The money was intended for the promotion of domestic tourism.
Industry officials, who declined to be named due to the sensitive evolving situation, said it was politicians who ran the state tourism agencies and, who along with their political henchmen, are responsible for these frauds.
