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Vanishing tyres leave dealers, distributors in a spin

By Damith Wickremasekara

A spate of robberies from tyre shops, where goods worth millions of rupees have been pilfered in recent months, has left dealers and distributors in a quandary. At least 16 dealers of a key supplier have been robbed in the past six months.

Most of the shops are broken into towards dawn, tyres loaded onto lorries which then vanish. In instances where there have been eyewitnesses, the robbers were armed with automatic rifles or pistols, police said.

One of the shops in Battaramulla, (above and below) from where over Rs 1.4 million worth of tyres were stolen. Pix by J. Weerasekera

Most of the robberies of the 16 cases in which complaints have been lodged were reported from the Western Province. However, other dealers said there have been a series of robberies in the outstations including in the Central, Southern and North Central Provinces.

One of the dealers from Battaramulla, Lasantha Adikariwatta who lost tyres to the value of over Rs 1.4 million, told the Sunday Times that as many as 80 tyres had been robbed from his shop early this year.
“When I arrived at the shop, I found that two large locks had been cut and the shop broken into. They had taken 80 tyres used for cars and vans,” he said.

Mr. Adikariwatta said that, two weeks later, two more shops had been robbed, and to date, there hasn’t been any breakthrough in the investigations in all three cases. He said that the gang had targeted expensive tyres and he believes that it is an organised gang.

R.H. Ratnayake of Kirindiwela told the Sunday Times that, last Saturday, a gang had broken into his shop and removed 120 tyres to the value of Rs. 1.3 million. “According to information available, the tyres had been removed around 2 and 3 a.m. and it appears that a lorry had been used to remove the stock,” he said.

He said the chains and locks on the doors had been broken. A tyre dealer from Panadura, Lalith Perera said that an attempt had been made to break into his shop last month, but it had been thwarted by the presence of an employee within.

“One of my workers inside had heard iron chains being cut. He noticed a lorry parked outside and some men trying to break into the shop. He found that the electricity supply had been disconnected. The worker had shouted in panic and run away through the emergency exit, frightening the robber who also took to their heels,” he said.

He said that the following week, another shop in the vicinity had been robbed and tyres worth Rs. 500,000 removed. Mr. Perera said that they have gathered information that the robbers send a vehicle or two earlier on a reconnaissance mission and thereafter pull off the robbery.

Mr. Perera expressed concern about the robberies, saying that, some of the tyre dealers have been forced to close down their business due to the consequent losses suffered, and appealed to the police to ensure that measures are taken to protect the shops.

Ms. Thamishi Roshini from Panadura told the Sunday Times that her shop had been robbed twice - the first time in December last year, when Rs. 500,000 worth of tyres had been removed, and the other in January, when tyres worth Rs. 1.2 million were stolen.

“The two incidents prompted me to close shop,” she added. Pandaura Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Hemantha Adhikari told the Sunday Times that, they have so far been able to arrest two organised gangs from Panadura and Nugegoda connected with robberies of tyres.

“The gang from Panadura is an armed gang. We also have more information about these robberies and have deployed several teams to track down the perpetrators,” he said.

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