A group of officers from the Special Operations Division of the Police Special Task Force headquarters camp on Sunday (5), arrested a couple from Millaniya, Belalantuduwa who had provided shelter, protection and facilities to underworld leader ‘Booru-Moona,’ who fled from the custody of the Airport Police. They were taken into custody while travelling in a three-wheeler together with their two children near Lake Gregory, Nuwara Eliya.
‘Booru Moona’, who had arrived at the airport on the evening of February 24 with a foreign passport under the name of a resident of PadukkaWaga, to leave for Dubai was taken into custody based on a Court order by officers of the Department of Immigration and Emigration and then arrested by the Airport Police.
Although he had been in Police custody, ‘Booru Moona’ had not been in a prison cell but free and had escaped from the Police station early morning on February 25. While fleeing this individual had called this couple and told them that he had been arrested at the airport and that he was fleeing from the airport police at that time.
Therefore, it has been revealed during interrogation of the couple by the Special Task Force that ‘Booru Moona had’ told them that they should be away from their house for a few days. Investigations have also revealed that after notifying the couple thus, ‘Booru Moona’ had switched off his mobile phone.
This couple who had got excited due to the phone call from ‘Booru Moona’ had left their house at Millaniya on the morning of the twenty-fifth, taking clothing with them, in the three-wheeler belonging to them.
By that afternoon, a sum of Rs.50,000 had been credited to the wife’s account from Italy and Rathgama Vidura from Italy had told the couple to keep the money. This had also been revealed during investigations. It is alleged that the couple had been told that they would not be isolated or forgotten.
It was revealed that this couple, together with their two children had gone in their three-wheeler to Hanwella and from there through Avissawella to Hatton. They had spent the twenty-fifth night at a hotel in Hatton and then gone to Nuwara Eliya on 26. Subsequent to spending a few days there, they arrived in Kegalle and spent another one or two days there. Later they returned to Nuwara Eliya and stayed there as if they were local tourists.
The Police Special Task which carried out investigations into the mobile phones that the couple had used were able to discover a lot more information.
Based on this, they had gone to Nuwara Eliya on Sunday (05) and taken the couple into custody near Lake Gregory, when they had left their accommodation to have dinner. A child studying in Grade three and a preschooler had been found inside the couple’s three-wheeler.
The parents of these children, K.D. Lakshan Chamara Mendis (34) and Raveena Nilaksha Herath (31) had both been arrested by the Police Special Task Force.
During investigations it had been discovered that the person named Lakshan Chamara was a Marine Engineer of the Navy deployed at the Colombo, Parakrama Camp. ‘Booru Moona’ too had served in the Navy for some time. Investigations had revealed further that both ‘Booru Moona’ and the husband taken into custody in Nuwara Eliya had known each other while serving in the Navy and were friends and that they were both champion target shooters. This suspect and ‘BooruMoona’ had participated in target shooting competitions together.
The husband who is a member of the Navy is a resident of Balapitiya. The wife is from Aluthgama. It is seen that they were living in Millaniya, after their marriage.
The Police Special Task Force said that this member of the Navy was in the habit of going to the camp in the morning and returning home in the evening. He had been on leave on February 22 and was due to report back to work on February 25, according to the STF. It has been discovered that he had been on leave during those days since his friend ‘Booru Moona’ was due to leave for Dubai and to provide any required facilities to him.
According to discoveries made during investigations it has been revealed that Rathgama Vidura sent ‘Booru Moona’ money from Italy to Sri Lanka from time to time and the money was credited to the bank account of the wife who is in custody at present.
The amount credited to her bank account from Italy on different dates is approximately Rs. 300,000.
It has been revealed that ‘Booru Moona’ had obtained a passport in another individual’s name using this money. He got this passport on December 12 last year.
It has been further revealed that he had handed over this passport to a foreign employment agency and made arrangements to go to Dubai for a job through that particular agency. It is said that he had subsequently participated in a training course of the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) as well. During inquiries made by the STF it had been discovered that it was the husband who was arrested in Nuwara Eliya who had taken his friend ‘Booru Moona’ to every place.
“It is apparent that ‘Booru Moona’ who had registered himself with the SLBFE had organised his trip to Dubai so that he would not be subject to suspicion at the airport,” a senior Police officer said.
‘Booru Moona’ had spent the final two weeks at the house at Millaniya. It was the couple who was arrested who had prepared his suitcase with clothing to be taken abroad.
They had taken him to the airport in a small hired van. Since the driver of this van had not been available the couple had arranged for a neighbour to drive them. This driver, who was unaware of ‘Booru Moona’ or his crimes, had been taken into custody by the Negombo Police on February 25 on suspicion.
On February 24, the couple had accompanied ‘Booru Moona’ to the airport taking their younger child with them as well.
They had dropped off the elder child at a tuition class and then gone to the airport, according to investigations. Further investigations revealed that they had dropped ‘Booru Moona’ at the airport and returned home to Millaniya in the same van they had hired. Then they fled from their house after returning the vehicle.
This raid had been carried out by a team of officers including Officer-In-Charge of the STF Operations Division, Inspector of Police B. H. S. Peiris under the guidance of Assistant Superintendent of Police (Intelligence/Special Operations/ Drugs and Organized Crimes Control), Sagara Kulasekera with the supervision of Intelligence Director of the STF Senior Superintendent of Police V. G. Rohan Karunaratne based on orders and instructions of DIG, Commander of the STF, Attorney-at-Law Waruna Jayasundera according to information received subsequent to a lengthy investigation carried out by officers of the Special Operations Unit of the STF Headquarters Camp.