• Spokesman notes nothing revealed from previous inquiries 
• Court temp. suspends life insurance payments to deceased’s beneficiaries

In the wake of the determination issued by the Colombo Magistrate’s Court (MC) that the death of businessman Dinesh Schaffter was due to external pressure applied to his neck and facial area, the Police stated that they are carrying out investigations into his death under a new investigation plan.

A five-member experts’ committee comprising judicial medical officers appointed to uncover the cause of death had recently submitted its report to Colombo Additional Magistrate Rajindra Jayasuriya. Considering all the submissions, the Court on 1 November determined that the death was due to external pressure applied on the deceased’s neck and facial area. 

Accordingly, the Additional Magistrate who ruled that a crime had been committed through this incident, ordered the Director of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) to arrest the relevant suspects and produce them before the court.

The Additional Magistrate also ordered the CID to take measures to hand over the remains of the late businessman, which are currently placed at the Karapitiya Teaching Hospital, to his family members. She also ordered to provide the necessary facilities for the burial of the remains at the Jawatte Cemetery, as per previous court orders.

Since the CID has not arrested any suspect in relation to the incident thus far, The Daily Morning queried Police Media Spokesman and Senior Superintendent of Police, attorney-at-law Nihal Thalduwa regarding the progress of the investigations into the much-talked-about death. In response, he said: “The Police will have to conduct further investigations into the incident, and it is being done at present.” When queried as to whether it is the same investigations that still continue, he said: “Nothing has been revealed through previous inquiries. So, the Police will have to prepare a new investigation plan and conduct investigations through it. It is happening now.”

Schaffter, who was the Director of the Janashakthi PLC Group, was found tied up in his car at the General Cemetery in Borella on 15 December of last year (2022) and died a day later while receiving treatment at the Intensive Care Unit of the National Hospital in Colombo. 

Meanwhile, Jayasuriya ordered two private insurance companies on Wednesday (8) to suspend payments from two local life insurance policies belonging to Schaffter to beneficiaries for a period of one week. This was after considering a request made by the Police Homicide and Organised Crimes Division. The request has been made in order to support the investigations being carried out pertaining to Schaffter’s death.