A businessman has been arrested by the police on suspicion of selling illegally imported cigarettes to schoolchildren in the Thanamalwila area.
It has been revealed that the suspect had provided these cigarettes of various flavors to a school student to sell to fellow students, Ada Derana reporter said.
Investigations revealed that the suspect had supplied the illegal foreign cigarettes to the student, instructing to sell the cigarettes. The cigarettes, purchased from the businessman at Rs. 100 per stick, were resold by the student at a price of Rs. 200 at the school premises, police said.
After a student of the same school had informed the principal, the student selling the cigarettes was brought in and searched, where two foreign cigarettes were found in the student’s possession.
Following information provided to the Thanamalwila Police Inspector in this regard, the suspect’s business premises was raided, resulting in the seizure of 690 sticks of foreign cigarettes and Rs. 360,000 in cash allegedly earned from sales.
The suspect is scheduled to be produced before the Hambantota Magistrate’s Court.
