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Every day a life is snuffed out in brutal tit for tat killings
DIG Jayakody said every police station has been instructed to arrest at least one person who is under warrant, per day
At least one person is murdered in the most brutal manner somewhere in the country every day, latest statistics compiled by the Police Department reveal.
During the past six months 286 were murdered with most of the victims being shot dead, slashed by sharp weapons or strangled.
In the latest incident reported on Friday night a businessman driving his son back home in his jeep was shot dead in the Ambalangoda area.The gunman who was in a car shot the businessman and drove away. The victim was identified as Helambage Premasiri, 53 .
In another recent incident in Beliatte a 40-year-old woman was shot dead over a land dispute. The suspect has been identified.
Police however say they are cracking down on hardcore criminals rounding up more than 50 from different locations in the country.
Deputy Inspector General of Police (Crime) Priyantha Jayakody said the murders were mainly related to private disputes or drug related incidents.
He said some of the recent killings were mostly connected with narcotics.
“A resident from Piliyandala was shot dead by a group connected with narcotics in Dehiwala. In a revenge attack a person was shot dead in the Mt Lavina area. We have made two arrests.
“Last month another person was shot dead in a fisheries harbour Ambalangoda. In a realted revenge attack a person returning from the Mahara prisons was shot dead. Again this was a clash among two groups,” he said.
Ambalangoda: The scene of the crime. Pic by Deepal De Silva
The DIG Crimes said to counter this trend police have arrested members of these gangs. However this has prompted them to go underground or travel overseas.
“In every police division we have a team deployed specifically to arrest hardcore criminals.They are not assigned any other duty other than to crackdown on the hardcore criminals,” DIG Jayakody said.
He said some killings are plotted by suspects or convicts in remand custody or those serving prison terms.
In another move to curb the increasing crime rate the DIG said every police station has been instructed to arrest at least one person who is under warrant, per day, to ensure that the number of wanted persons are reduced.