Man loses car during test drive run
KUDAMADUWA: A man posted an advertisement calling for interested buyers for a car that he intended to sell at a reasonable price.
A day after the advert appeared three smartly clad men turned up at the man’s residence and showed interest in purchasing the car.
After an initial inspection of the vehicle the three strangers sought a test drive to ascertain the road worthiness of the car.
The unsuspecting owner gladly obliged the strangers with the vehicle key and later the three along with the owner boarded the vehicle and headed towards Piliyandala.
Later on entering a remote stretch near Piliyandala the three men forcibly pushed the owner out of the vehicle on to the road and sped off never to be seen thereafter. “People intending to sell their vehicles to strangers should be extra vigilant at all times since confidence tricksters of this nature are on the rise and on the move. It is advisable to seek the services of registered vehicle sale operators since it is safe and wise even though it may cost a little extra”, one senior police official warned this week. This incident was reported from the Kudamaduwa Police Division.
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Lover chops to death woman and boy
AMPARA: A 32-year-old woman and her 13-year-old son were brutally hacked to death following a heated domestic brawl at a home in Damman-Ampara earlier this week.
Initial investigations have revealed that the suspect was the woman’s lover of many years after her soldier husband died during the height of the battle against terrorism, police said. They said on the day of the alleged incident the woman had telephoned her mother and complained that the suspect highly intoxicated was behaving in an aggressive manner.
She told the mother that owing to the prevailing situation her son would not be able to attend school the following day. The mother’s telephone calls to her daughter the next day went unanswered and the bloodied corpses were eventually discovered by a neighbour.
The suspect who lives in the deep South town of Tissamaharama later fled the area and a hunt is on for his arrest.
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Health worker on the mat for graft
DELKANDA: An acting health administrator was arrested after he was caught red-handed accepting a bribe of Rs. 10,000.The suspect attached to the Kotte Municipal Council had demanded the cash from a person who had dumped garbage on to the street to water down the charges against him.
The man was picked up by plain clothes sleuths from the Commission to Investigate Bribery and Corruption (CIABOC) at a location in Delkanada.
The CIABOC sleuths were acting on a tip-off, police said.
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Toddler dies in freak accident
HALDUMMULLA: A family was this week mourning the death of a toddler who died in a freak accident while accompanying his parents on a visit to relatives at Harankahawa in Haldummulla, police said yesterday.
According to police the four-year-old victim was being carried on his father’s shoulders when the elder slipped on a boulder and tumbled down a slope with the child. Seconds later a loose rock landed on the child crushing him to death. The boy was pronounced dead on arrival at the local hospital, police said. The victim was a resident of Udaperuma in Welimada and the Haldemulla police are conducting further investigations.
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Constable arrested in ‘foul deal’
TISSAHARAMA: A drunken police constable along with a friend is alleged to have entered a poultry farm and forcibly removed two fowls after the owner refused to give them two chickens.
This incident was reported from Gangasiripura in Tissamaharama, according to police. They said the suspect policeman and his friend were at a party when they decided to enter the poultry farm and asked for two chickens. However, when the owner refused, the suspects had grabbed two chickens by force and taken them away.
The constable attached to a police station in the Metropolis was subsequently arrested after the farm owner lodged a complaint with the local police.The suspect pleaded guilty after he was produced before the Tissamaharama District Judge and Magistrate Kanchanamali Susantha Gunasekara. He was later released on a cash bail of Rs.10, 000 and personal bail of Rs.100, 000.
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One injured in Wilpattu shoot-out
WILPATTU: One person was injured in a fire-fight between a group of Security Forces personnel and three unidentified gunmen deep in the Wilpattu National Park earlier this week. One gunman who sustained injuries in the shoot-out was removed to the Cheddikulam Hospital and later transferred to the Vavuniya Government Hospital.
The motive for the shooting was not clear but military investigators believe that the gunmen belonged to a larger group of poachers operating in the area. The police along with the military has launched a hunt for the remaining two gunmen who fled the area.
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Cop run over: 19-year-old held
HIKKADUWA: A 19-year-old youth was taken into custody after he is alleged to have intentionally run over a Traffic Policeman at a location in Hikkaduwa.
According to police the incident took place on a white line crossing when the suspect failed to heed a stop signal and proceeded after ramming into the policeman. The seriously wounded was later rushed to the Karapitiya Hospital while the suspect was arrested from his home at Thelikada-Baddegama the same day.
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Five arrested for intimidating police
ALUTHGAMA: Five persons from the same family including two females were arrested after they were alleged to have obstructed the duties of police in Moragalla Aluthgama.
The police team led by the station’s Officer-in Charge (OIC) had arrived at a residence to enforce a court order when the incident allegedly took place.
The group is alleged to have intimated and even attempted to assault the police officers in the ensuing melee.
Aluthgama Police are conducting further investigations.
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Road fatalities: 14 dead
NEGOMBO: At least 11 motorcycle riders and three pedal cyclists made up the total number of 14 motor traffic fatalities for this week, according to police.
The fatalities were reported from Wennapuwa, Eravur, Hungama, Aralanwila, Moratuwa, Yakkala, Katunayake, Habarana, Adampan, Angunakolapellesa and Pugoda.
Among those killed included a woman motor cycle rider in Angunakolapelessa, Kalutara South and Avissawellla.