The father of the schoolgirl who was abducted recently in Kandy has denied the claims made by the main suspect, his nephew, with regard to the events surrounding the incident.  

The schoolgirl recently abducted in the Daulagala area of Gampola has been handed over to the Daulagala Police by the Ampara Police officers on Monday (13) night, along with the primary suspect.

The suspect and the victim were expected to be produced before the Gampola Magistrate’s Court yesterday (14) for further legal proceedings.

Speaking to the media at the Police station, the father of the abducted girl denied claims of any romantic relationship between his daughter and the suspect. He clarified that while the suspect is his nephew, the other two individuals allegedly involved in the incident are not known to him. The girl’s father further alleged that the abduction was carried out solely as part of a scheme to extort money, dismissing any other motives behind the crime.

Police on Monday apprehended Mohammed Nassar, a 31-year-old resident of Kahatapitiya in Gampola, who abducted an 18-year-old schoolgirl at Daulagala, Kandy, on 11 January. The duo was located near the Ampara bus stand on a luxury bus scheduled to depart for Kandy on Monday morning. Police had traced the suspect’s location through the analysis of his mobile phone data, which revealed his presence in the Ampara Police Division. Acting on this information, five Police teams were deployed, leading to the suspect and the schoolgirl being taken into custody at around 9.30 a.m. on Monday. The investigations have revealed that the suspect and the girl had traveled from Polonnaruwa to Valaichchenai and then to Ampara in a three-wheeler, where they spent the night at a private accommodation.

According to initial statements, the suspect claimed that the abduction stemmed from a family dispute. He has alleged that he had previously worked overseas in Japan for two years and provided money to the girl’s father –  his maternal uncle –  but was not repaid. This disagreement, coupled with issues over their proposed marriage, reportedly led to the incident. Accordingly, the youth had also allegedly demanded a ransom of Rs. 5 million from the girl’s father after the abduction.