Former SriLankan Airlines chief in US$16 million Airbus corruption case found dead

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 said.Chandrasena was remanded in March on charges of conspiring to accept a US$16 million bribe from Airbus in connection with a US$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.Kapila Chandrasena was the former chief executive of SriLankan Airlines. Photo: HandoutRajapaksa, 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.