Masquerades

Criminals posing as security personnel threaten the business community

Ransom demands made by criminals masquerading as security personnel sent ripples down the spines of the business community in Colombo during the past few months and efforts to trace them became a futile effort. The business community in the metropolis however were sceptical and wary about the role played by the security forces deployed in their areas.

They always suspected policemen and security personnel as culprits. Even policemen probing such cases were baffled initially due to the lack of evidence.

But as time went by police were able to unravel the mystery surrounding ransom demands made by criminals. On an earlier occasion few criminals involved in such ransom demands were apprehended by Grandpas, Pettah and Kotahena police stations. Knowing very well the heat was on, and police were on their trail the criminals shifted their modes operandi to Wellawatte and Bambalapitiya areas.

Meanwhile several businessmen living at Wellawatte and Bambalapitiya area were abducted and robbed by men masquerading as policemen from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID). A number of such abductions and robberies were reported from January to mid March this year from the Wellawatte and Bambalapitiya areas.

The victims were Tamil businessmen residing in these areas. OIC Crimes Wellawatte, Chief Inspector Deepthi Wijewickrema was aware of a gang that was operating in the Wellawatte and Bambalapitiya areas where Tamil persons were abducted and robbed of their belongings. The modes operandi of the gang was to inform unsuspecting victims they were from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).

The victims were abducted in a three wheeler taken to a lonely spot and then robbed of their belongings such as cash, gold jewellery etc. Although Inspector Wijewickrema detailed a team of policemen to keep an eye on any suspicious persons hovering about in the Wellawatte area attempts to nab the gang became a futile effort.

Most Tamil persons who arrived in Colombo were from distant places and were awfully scared to complain to the police thinking that they would be victimised further. It became a headache for the Wellawatte police as well when the victims did not come forward to lodge complaints at the police station.

But fortunately last week a man turned up before OIC Crimes, Wellawatte police station Chief Inspector Wijewickrema and narrated his tale of woe. He was a son of a retired police officer.

Whilst walking along Galle Road he was accosted by two persons who claimed that they were CID sleuths. They demanded his National Identity Card (NIC) and when he produced it they told him they were not satisfied with it and would like to question him further.

Thereafter the man was bundled into a three wheeler taxi and was taken to a lonely spot around 6.30 p.m. The two CID officers then demanded his gold chain worth Rs. 50,000 and the Automated Teller Machine (ATM) card. They also learnt of the secret code number of the ATM card. The ATM card was issued from a reputed private bank in Sri Lanka. After the man was robbed of his belongings they let him go without any hassle.

The CID officers left the man in the lurch and proceeded towards Ratmalana in the same three wheeler Taxi. The men then arrived at a private bank at Ratmalana and using the ATM card, withdrew Rs. 10,000.

A few days later the man who was robbed turned up before Chief Inspector Wijewickrema and informed that a sum of Rs. 10,000 had been robbed from his account. The Chief Inspector, after obtaining a court order proceeded to the bank at Ratmalana immediately where the CID men had withdrawn Rs. 10,000.

He was accompanied by the complainant who was robbed a few days ago at Wellawatte. After discussing the incident with the bank manager, Chief Inspector Wijewickrema had access to the images of the Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) that was concealed near the Automated Teller Machine.

Meanwhile the man was able to identify the two CID officers who robbed him that day. After obtaining the photo images of the two robbers, Chief Inspector Wijewickrema went back to his office and sounded an alert.

He then showed the photographs of the two robbers to his coterie of policemen and a man hunt was launched to arrest the two bogus CID officers. On a tip off the Chief Inspector arrested the two bogus CID men at their homes in Ratmalana and Moratuwa areas. They were young men between the ages of 25-28. One man was a heroin addict.

Both men had visited Casino night clubs in the Colombo city and had spent lavishly. Police later recovered stolen gold jewellery pawned at banks and at private pawn shops at Moratuwa and Ratmalana.

Meanwhile Chief Inspector Wijewickrema is looking for the third suspected man, the three wheeler driver from Panadura who had participated in several robberies.

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