Duminda Dissanayake acquitted in gold-plated T-56 rifle case

Former Member of Parliament Duminda Dissanayake has been acquitted in the case related to the ownership of a gold-plated T-56 assault rifle.

The ruling was delivered today (July 29) by Mount Lavinia Magistrate Chathurika de Silva, who stated that there was no direct or circumstantial evidence to support the charges against Dissanayake.

He was arrested on May 23, 2025, by the Terrorism Investigation Division (TID), after a gold-plated T-56 rifle was found inside a woman’s travel bag at the Havelock City apartment complex on May 20, 2025.

Following his arrest, Dissanayake was presented before the Mount Lavinia Magistrate’s Court and was ordered to be remanded.

On July 14, 2025, he was produced before the Colombo High Court, where Judge Manjula Thilakaratne granted him bail Rs. 250,000 in cash and two sureties of Rs. 5 million each.

With today’s court decision, Dissanayake has now been formally cleared of all charges related to the case.

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