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Pinning
down the kingpins One of the prominent cases connected to the suspension of the Judge over granting of bail to alleged kingpins involved a drug trafficker who lived in a posh Colombo 7 mansion and possessed property estimated to the value of a stunning Rs. 500 million at the time of his arrest. Apart from land, buildings and other property he is also alleged to have possessed a huge amount of cash when he was arrested along with his wife and a driver. In addition to property and money he is also believed to have wielded influence in important places including the judiciary The alleged link between this drug traficker and High Court judge is under investigation by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) while the judge has been suspended from service. (See separate story). The alleged Colombo 7 drug trafficker reportedly posed off as a gem merchant to the outside world. But the PNB busted the cover to show all that glitters is not gems but deadly heroin. After about four months of investigations police have now been able to get a clearer picture on how the drugs were smuggled into the country. Some of the suspects linked to the racket have reportedly fled the country. Over the past year the PNB and other police stations throughout the country have detected over 50 kilograms of heroin with a street value of over Rs. 1000 million. The PNB has been responsible for the bulk of the raids, confiscating more than 46 kilograms of the stuff. "Compared to previous years there has been an increase in the detections of drugs," says PNB chief Senior Superintendent of Police Pujitha Jayasundara. He attributes the increase in detection to a better co-ordination between the police narcotic sunits in the South Asian region. "We have been receiving regular feed back from the regional narcotic sbureaus and diplomatic missions," he said. Commenting on the involvement of foreigners in the drug scandal, he said in recent months there has been an increase in the visits of Indian and Pakistani nationals who are involved in drug trafficking. "Some of these drug peddlers who come from India are not in a position to declare why they have come to Sri Lanka or where they hope to stay. Some of them who claim to be tourists have been arrested while in the act of handing over drugs to the local dealers," he said. Another reason for the increase in drug trafficking has been the ceasefire agreement which has enabled drug smuggling operations along the coast off the north western and north eastern parts of the country. Smugglers have a relatively easy access through the northern and eastern coastal areas as naval coast guards have relaxed their patrolling operations in these areas. The PNB chief also said many local traffickers opt to travel to the north western or north eastern parts of the country as they are able to purchase heroin at cheaper rates than in other parts of the country. In a recent detection in Mannar, the seven suspects who were arrested for smuggling drugs were identified as ex-militants belonging to the Tamil Eelam Liberation Organsiation (TELO). This arrest was made on a tip off given to the Army. In another case two people who were arrested in Matale with Herion claimed they had purchased the hot goods from Trincomalee. With fighting between government forces and the LTTE coming to a halt many of the smugglers are using the Mannar and Trincomalee areas to smuggle drugs. In many cases the suspects have been found bartering electronic items for drugs which are smuggled into the country from India. PNB chief says they have identified some of the key routes through which drugs are being smuggled into the country and will step up their operations in the coming weeks. "We have drawn plans to have better co-ordination with institutions including the Customs, Attorney General's Department and the Government Analysts department to effectively combat this menace," says SSP Jayasundara.
Hi-tech war on drugs This course is being conducted under an agreement signed between the Sri Lankan government and the USA to provide training and facilities to officers here on basic criminal investigation operations. The training programme conducted by an ex US police officer, James D. Lane also includes a computer training programme which will lead to the setting up of an island wide computer net work with details on drug traffickers and drug dealers.
Judge under microscope JSC Secretary, P.W.D.C. Jayathilake told The Sunday Times they were studying the file about the particular judge and would be consulting the AG on the matter. He said this case was among other files in which various allegations have been brought against many judges and magistrates. He declined to name the number of cases against judges and magistrates. According to allegations against the High Court judge, he is reported to have given bail to those who were not eligible for bail. The judge is reported to have handed over his retirement papers. Justice Ministry Secretary Suhadha Gamlath told The Sunday Times there were irregularities in the judicial system and it would be the priority of the Ministry to ensure that such incidents do not take place. |
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