Fifty-two passengers issued with fake tickets
Officers of the special raid unit of the Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) detected 52 passengers in a SLTB bus plying from Kadawatha to Galle on the Southern Expressway, with counterfeit tickets.
The two conductors and the driver of the bus were arrested and handed over to the Kadawatha Police.
They were subsequently produced in the Mahara Courts and remanded till today (7).
One-way fare per person, between Kadawatha and Galle being Rs 950, a total of Rs 49,400 had been defrauded, an official said.
SLTB Chairman Lalith De Alwis said the Board has initiated an internal investigation into this incident.
According to Transport, Highways and Mass Media Minister, Dr. Bandula Gunawardhana, the SLTB Chairman has lodged a complaint with the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) regarding frequent reports of issuing counterfeit tickets to passengers in SLTB buses plying on the Southern Expressway, which the CID is currently investigating.
SLTB buses on the Southern Expressway run without conductors and the tickets are issued before the journey.
The Minister has ordered the SLTB authorities to conduct a formal investigation into the matter, as it was found that, even though the daily income of SLTB had gone up by more than Rs 500,000 by operating buses on the expressway, there were reports of fraud.
According to preliminary investigations, it has been found that another group is systematically pilfering the income due to the SLTB, by issuing counterfeit tickets.
Accordingly, when a bus plying between Embilipitiya and Makumbura was inspected by officers recently, it was found that 17 of the 24 tickets issued prior to the journey, were counterfeit.
The fare per person in that instance had been Rs 1,035 and the total embezzled for that journey alone was Rs 17,770, officials said.
Accordingly, the CID has started an investigation into the income of all SLTB buses plying on the Southern Expressway.