Underworld king-pin ‘Baila’ meets gruesome end | Sunday Observer

Underworld king-pin ‘Baila’ meets gruesome end

17 June, 2018
Madush and Iresh
Madush and Iresh

The drug operations of underworld drug kingpins - Angoda Lokka and Makandure Madush suspected to be in hiding in Dubai, have been completely destabilised and their avenue of funding has also been affected drastically with the killing of their main local operator Rumalsha Iresh Madushanka Nawagamuwa alias ‘Baila’ alias ‘Perethaya’ being killed in a shootout with the STF on June 9, according to Police Spokesman SP Ruwan Gunasekara.

Baila’s death is a big blow to Madush as Baila had been the key figure who had been operating Madush’s underworld activities and managing his funds locally.

The police was able to bring down many of the drug related operations and target several key underworld figures recently as part of its extensive investigations and also due to many leads being given to them by another prominent underworld figure who is said to be a close ally of Baila.

The 30-year-old Iresh Madushanka alias Baila is said to have had two main addresses, one is his mother’s at 607/1, Rohana Priyadharshana Mawatha, Panagoda, Homagama and the other where his wife and daughter live at 162, Ihala Yagoda Road, Imbulgoda.

Baila has over 18 cases filed in court against him for various offences including extortion, robbery, drugs, killings and firearms related offences, from around 2010. Of them the latest cases against him were a killing incident using a T56 on January 18, 2017 in Homagama and the other for the possession of a T56, two magazines, 82 bullets and a micro pistol on February 02, 2017 in Athurugiriya.

He was arrested and having had his bail application denied, he appealed to the Avissawella High Court and eventually was granted bail on March 22, 2018.

Investigations revealed that the bail money of Rs. 5 million required for the release of the underworld figure Baila had been sent to him by his boss Makandure Madush as Iresh(Baila) was his key disciple and he was crucial for his drug operations. Once released on bail, Baila never showed up in court every weekend as mandated in his bail conditions, so the police started a man-hunt. After his release on bail he hadheaded straight to his mother’s home in Panagoda for a week and then to Kandy for two reasons - one to visit his brother who lives in Wattegama and the other to visit his illegitimate wife in Digana.

Thereafter he used to come to Imbulgoda to his legitimate wife’s home.

Meanwhile, Baila had rented a car from another underworld figure ‘Podi Una’ and with two other disciples, he had headed to Matara in May this year to return the same day in the evening and bring back with him two T56 rifles and two pistols.

All this information was given to the police by a close associate of Baila who in fact, had been taking care of his drug operations while Baila was in prison.

A major portion of the money that was made through drug operations was divided among Madush, Angoda Lokka and Baila, while the other smaller operators only received the leftovers which led to bad blood between them and the main operators.

While Madush had realised how vital Baila was to his operations, he had instructed him not to get directly involved in any operation and to only plan the operations and deploy his disciples to execute them.

After a party at Baila’s brother’s home on June 8, the next day, June 9, Baila and an accomplice had set off to Madawala to look into the robbery plan in a Honda Hybrid car bearing number NC KO 3823.

The STF and the Organized Crimes Division got the information and they set up a road block at Theldeniya around 12.15 pm on June 9. Baila was driving.

Baila was carrying a 9mm pistol and around 7 ammunition, while his accomplice was carrying a .37 mm pistol with six ammunition. Fifty two grams of heroin was stashed under the driver’s seat.

When they reached the STF road block, they were stopped but sped off only to realise that another STF road block was a few metres ahead. Knowing that they had no option, they stopped the vehicle, got off and decided to take on the STF but both ended up being shot and killed by the STF. 

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