J. Sri Ranga is named as a suspect in the arson attack on the president's private residence.

The Criminal Investigations Department (CID) today named J. Sri Ranga, a former Parliamentarian as a suspect in the case where President Ranil Wickremesinghe's private residence was torched.

President Wickremesinghe's private residence on the fifth lane was set on fire by a group of protestors last year during the upheavals in Colombo.

Accordingly, Colombo Fort Magistrate Thilina Gamage issued an order directing the prison authorities to produce J. Sri Ranga before the court on May 3.

Former MP J. Sri Ranga is currently in remand custody for allegedly influencing the witnesses of a fatal traffic accident in Vavuniya in 2011.

A group of protesters torched President Ranil Wickremesinghe's private residence on July 9 last year, causing extensive damage to the property.