- Contract hit cost as less as Rs. 3 lakhs, directed from Dubai
- Serving Army ‘shooter’ suspected to be linked to another murder
- Shooter had stolen the victims gold chain and added a pendant to it
The Police, spearheaded by the Special Task Force (STF) and aided by the Military Intelligence Corps (MIC) during the early hours of yesterday (25) apprehended the suspected assassin who had allegedly carried out the murder of a shopkeeper in Mahabage last week (21).
The arrested suspect, a serving non-commissioned officer (Corporal) with the fourth Gemunu Watch (GW) Regiment, had been detained by the MIC after he attempted to flee the encampment he was on duty in Amara on Saturday night (24). The Army named the suspect as Cpl. Neragala Nuwan Chaminda de Silva (Service No. 421607), a resident of Madampe, Ambalangoda. The suspect was handed over to the STF by the Army for onward investigation. The Sri Lanka Army confirmed that the suspect was a serving member in the GW regiment.
According to police sources, de Silva is suspected to have been the assassin who shot to death the Shopkeeper in Mahabage last week. He is said to have been aided in the murder by two others, both ex-military, to carry out the contract killing. All three suspects are now in custody.
The victim of the Mahabage shooting had succumbed to injuries while being rushed to the Colombo North Teaching Hospital in Ragama. The deceased, named Hettiarachchige Don Sujith alias ‘Ukkuwa’, was the brother-in-law of the organised crime figure ‘Welle Saranga’ and a resident of North Batagama in Ja-Ela. Reports indicate that Sujith had been receiving death threats from another crime figure ‘Dubai Nipuna’. It is suspected that Welle Saranga and Dubai Nipuna are engaged in a turf war over narcotic sale territories.
A senior Police Officer close to the investigation told The Daily Morning that it is suspected that this was not de Silva’s first crime, and that he is likely linked to another drive-by-shooting linked murder in Wellampitiya, a few months ago.
“He (suspect Cpl. de Silva) has been working on and off as a gun for hire, while being in uniform and serving in the Army. We believe that the Mahabage hit was sanctioned by an organised crime figure currently hiding in Dubai for a price of Rs 300,000. I know it sounds shocking doesn’t it? A life is valued at that little today,” the Police Officer said.
The Police suspect that the ‘hit’ was planned by another ex-soldier, a deserter, suspected to be from the same regiment, who had acted as the ‘rider’ who operated the stolen motorbike which was used for the murder.
“The Corporal, had applied for leave, left his detachment, and arrived near the target’s location by bus on Wednesday (21) morning, where he was picked up by his accomplish, another deserter, who had ridden the bike with de Silva to a second location, where the firearm used for the crime had been delivered to by a three-wheeler (firearms are rented for crime, with a set number of ammunition, the police source said). The duo had then moved to the target, on instructions from an ‘observer’ who was positioned to keep an eye on the victim’s movements. The shooter, had then dismounted, entered the shop, executed the victim and even ripped off the victims gold chain, and had left the area. The shooter had later obtained a gold pendent to be used with the gold chain he had snatched from the dying victim,” the police investigator told The Daily Morning.
The Police are on the hunt for the suspect who had delivered the ‘gun on hire’ to the assassin and have arrested a family member on charges of aiding and abiding a crime suspect to flee. Further investigations are underway to ascertain if the three suspects in custody are linked to other murders. The Police suspect that the Mahabage and Wellapitiya murders, like many other shootings in recent past, are linked to organised crime and drug smuggling.