An accountant, who is also the Human Resources Manager of a private hotel, who was arrested for allegedly soliciting a sexual bribe from a female employee, had been remanded till February 16 by the Colombo Chief Magistrate Prasanna Alwis today.
Last week, the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) conducted the first crackdown on bribery in the private sector under the powers conferred by the new Anti-Corruption Act.
The Commission said that the Anti-Corruption Act No. 09 of 2023 has empowered the Bribery Commission to address bribery in the private sector, overriding powers that previously applied only to bribery or corruption in the public sector.
Accordingly, the first raid on a bribery offense in the private sector was conducted on January 26 by officials with the approval of the Commission.
The arrest was made based on a complaint filed by a resident of Mahavilacchiya.
The female employee, working in a private hotel, was promised full payment of 75% of the current service charges, along with arrangements for her employment to be confirmed by higher officials in the future.
Also, she was assured that necessary arrangements would be carried out to allow her to continue her work without any trouble.
In return, the accountant of the hotel allegedly brought her to a room in a private hotel in Habarana for sexual intercourse.
