21 Wanathamulla suspects granted bail

By T. Farook Thajudeen

A Colombo Additional Magistrate yesterday releasing 21 persons arrested in Wanathamulla for alleged drug trafficking and criminal activities on Rs. 25,000 personal bail, directed the aggrieved parties to complain to police regarding the six persons who area said to be missing.  

The Additional Magistra-te also remanded two suspects.

Colombo Crime Division (CCD) yesterday produced 23 suspects who were arrested after conducting a search operation at ‘T 20 Watte’ at Baseline Mawatha, Wanathamulla, Borella on 21 April.

They submitted to Magistrate Praharsha Ranasinghe that they conducted the search operation to arrest criminals who were involved in various kinds of criminal activities in the area.

They said 27 suspects were arrested and four released on bail. They produced the other 21 suspects in court and moved to remand them as investigations were not over as the police had to verify about the suspects from the police stations in the area.

The police said the 17th suspect Wickram-aarachchige Susantha is a wanted person and there is a warrant for his arrest. The 20th suspect was also a wanted person for assaulting constables of Dematagoda Police, the CCD said.

Counsel Gunaratna Wanninayake and Ajith Pathirana appearing with a team of lawyers submitted that the factual case and the history of the incident was different from what the police alleged.

They said on 14 April there was a brawl between four police officers who were in civvies and two residents of “T 20 Watte”. The counsel said the police officers who were in civvies were drunk and involved in the brawl with some residents in the tenement.

On the following day those involved in the brawl were apprehended near a supermarket in Dematagoda by the police and after assaulting they were ordered to kneel down at the zebra crossing.

On the following morning Borella Police, Dematagoda Police and STF conducted a joint operation in T 20 Garden and arrested the residents who were sleeping in the houses. The counsel contended that the Police manhandled those who were arrested and had introduced heroin and bombs on them to frame charges against them.

The Prosecuting inspector of the CCD said that they were arrested by the Dematagoda police and in were remand which the suspects counsel refuted. Attorney-at-law Udul Premaratna of Activists for Human Rights watched the interest of the aggrieved parties.