Jayasuriya charged under ICC anti-corruption code

Wednesday 17th October 2018 03:21 EDT
 
 

Sri Lankan batting legend Sanath Jayasuriya was charged on two counts for non-cooperation in an ongoing International Cricket Council (ICC) anti-corruption probe and given two weeks to respond by the cricket’s world governing body. The ICC did not specify what exactly prompted its action against the celebrated cricketer, who is a World Cup winner and has played 110 Tests and 445 ODIs for Sri Lanka.

However, a source in Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) said that the former player is in the line of fire for “trying to block” an ICC probe which began in 2015. The investigation into Sri Lankan cricket began after Galle curator Jayananda Warnaweera was banned for three years in 2016 for failing to cooperate with the Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU). Starting on Monday, Jayasuriya has 14 days from October 15 to respond.

The charges relate to failure or refusal to cooperate with an Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) investigation and obstructing or delaying an investigation, including concealing, tampering with or destroying documentation. “At first, he refused to join the probe when the ACU investigations’ team approached him last year. He also declined the request to part with the information in his phone, which was relevant to the investigators,” the SLC source said. “But the ICC has not charged him with either match-fixing or any corrupt activities. The charge against him is only non-cooperation in probe,” he added.

The ACU probe into corruption in Sri Lanka has been ongoing for over a year. ACU general manager Alex Marshall stating earlier that a team was on the island “as part of ongoing investigations into serious allegations of corruption”. The ACU had also briefed the nation’s president, prime minister as well as the sports minister, who is in charge of oversees Sri Lanka Cricket. No names have been divulged.


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