A man suspected to be the gunman in the murder of the Chairman of the Weligama Pradeshiya Sabha, Lasantha Wickramasekara has been arrested a short while ago in Nawinna, Maharagama, police said.
The arrest was made during a joint operation carried out by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and the Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID), with the assistance of the State Intelligence Service.
Earlier today, six others linked to the murder were also apprehended.
Two more suspects allegedly involved in the killing of the Chairman of the Weligama Pradeshiya Sabha, Lasantha Wickramasekara were arrested in Galle.
The duo was arrested by the Divisional Crime Detective Bureau of Matara, police stated.
Another individual who allegedly aided and abetted in the killing of the Chairman of the Weligama Pradeshiya Sabha, was arrested in Galle earlier today by the Weligama Police.
The individual taken into custody is a three-wheeler driver, and police said he is a resident of Hiyare, Galle.
It is reported that on the day before the shooting, he had accompanied the gunmen to Galle and Matara.
It is also stated that on the day of the shooting, he had brought the gunmen to the location and after the attack, he had assisted them in fleeing the scene.
Furthermore, it has been revealed that he had provided a sum of money to the gunmen and that he had received a payment of Rs. 20,000 for his assistance.
Earlier today, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) arrested three individuals in connection with the recent murder of the Chairman of the Weligama Pradeshiya Sabha.
The investigation is being carried out by several police teams under the direct supervision of the Senior Deputy Inspector General (SDIG) of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), the Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID), and the Senior DIGs in charge of the Southern Province.
Following a planned operation by the FCID, police received information that several suspects connected to the murder were hiding in the 50-House Scheme area within the Kekirawa Police Division in the Anuradhapura District.
Accordingly, officers of the FCID, with the assistance of the Police Special Task Force (STF) and the Sri Lanka Army, conducted a raid early this morning (26) on a plot of land containing an abandoned house used as a threshing floor.
During the operation, police arrested a male and a female suspect believed to have been involved in the crime.
According to police, several other individuals present at the location engaged in a scuffle with officers during the arrest, resulting in one police officer sustaining injuries and being admitted to hospital for treatment.
Police also recovered one of the motorcycles used in the murder, Rs. 1.2 million in cash, quantities of heroin and crystal methamphetamine (“Ice”), and equipment used for drug consumption.
In addition, another suspect — a resident of the area who is believed to have aided the group — was also taken into custody.
Chairman Wickramasekara was shot dead on Wednesday (22), inside his office at the Weligama Pradeshiya Sabha premises by an unidentified gunman.
According to police, the assailant, dressed in a white shirt and wearing a black face mask, entered the chairman’s office under the pretext of signing a letter.
CCTV footage showed the suspect firing four shots at Chairman Wickramasekara, who was seated at his official desk, before fleeing the scene on a motorcycle with an accomplice.
The chairman sustained injuries to the head, chest, and abdomen and was admitted to Matara General Hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries.
Following the incident, police teams were deployed under the direct supervision of SDIG Kithsiri Jayalath to investigate and apprehend those responsible.
