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Drug traffickers hit back as raids intensify: Police
The haul of 198 kg of heroin. Pic by Augustin Fernando
The recent killing of a Policeman in an ambush at Piliyandala, came as Police began to step up raids on narcotics dealers and smugglers, a senior police official said yesterday.
DIG Narcotics- Kamal Silva said that, within the past week, over 200 kg of heroin have been detected by the Police, as part of a major operation to seize narcotics. “As we intensify our raids, there is a backlash from those engaged in the narcotics trade,” he told the Sunday Times.
However, Police have been successful in detecting large quantities of narcotics in the past week, with the largest haul of 198 kg of heroin in Chilaw.
According to DIG Puttalam- Champika Siriwardena, Police had been trailing the suspect for three months, based on information from an informant. He said the narcotics were smuggled out of Afghanistan and offloaded mid-sea, onto a Sri Lankan multi-day fishing boat which brought it to an island called Muthupanthiya, off Chilaw.
Police arrested the main suspect while he was transporting the heroin in his vehicle. This man fronts as a vehicle spare parts importer, Police said.
The man and his son are now in custody in connection with the heroin bust.
Meanwhile, the Sri Lanka Coastguard detected a package containing 9 kg of heroin about eight nautical miles off the Kankesantuari coast.
The package is believed to have been dropped off by Indian fishermen involved in narcotics smuggling, to be picked up later on the Sri Lankan side.
“The parcel was well packed with several layers of polythene, but the weight attached to keep it under water had broken loose, and the parcel had floated to the surface, when the coastguard had detected it,” Police said. The smugglers use a GPS system to locate the parcel.
Meanwhile, Police also found 3 kg of heroin in a garbage dump near Captain Gardens Kovil on D.R. Wijewardene Mawatha, which probably was left there to be picked up later.
No arrests have been made in connection with these two detections, to date.