Ticking time bomb defused in the nick of time
Informants rewarded:
Sunday crime by Jayampathy Jayasinghe
It was a small time trader who averted a major disaster at the
Delkande fair last Sunday when he accidentally discovered a powerful
time bomb inside a bag that weighed 8 kilograms lying at his boutique
ready to explode any moment.
According to police the powerful time bomb was ticking away when it
was found in the nick of time. The time bomb was to explode in ten
minutes time. The bomb was removed to the Mirihana police station by the
army bomb disposal squad where it was de-activated. The bomb had
contained C4 type explosives powerful enough to blow up a convoy of
vehicles passing that way police sources said.
The timely detection averted another major catastrophe that day.
Imagine the loss of lives of innocent civilians and the damage it would
wreck on public and private property had the bomb exploded. It is a
painful reminder of incidents in the past that had left psychic scars on
minds of people.
People have been terrified and traumatised of bomb explosions in the
past where scores of innocent people had died on public roads due to
terrorist activity. The big question that looms around is whether
several car and lorry bombs were smuggled into Colombo and its suburb
five years ago when the then government signed a peace agreement with
the LTTE.
However one could assume that the bomb brought to the Gangodawila
fair was intended to destroy innocent lives of those at the Sunday fair.
But what was its intended target?
One could also argue that terrorist need not bring a powerful bomb
all the way to the Gangodawila fair when they can detonate it elsewhere
for that matter.
According to SSP Nugegoda Deshabandu Tennakoon, police teams are
investigating whether the bomb left at a boutique in close proximity to
the High Level road was meant to wreck havoc on a convoy of vehicles
carrying VVIP to the 17th SLFP convention at the National Youth Centre
at Maharagama.
As reported before owing to tight security in and around Nugegoda and
Maharagama areas it would have been impossible for the adversary to
penetrate the security cordon carrying the bag that contained the bomb
by himself or in a vehicle.
Under those circumstances one could assume that the adversary was
forced to jettison the deadly cargo at a boutique closer to the High
Level road. Yet, had the bomb exploded at a time when a convoy of
vehicles were passing the consequences would have been catastrophic.
The trader first impression when he spotted the travelling bag was
about a bomb. What went on his mind was of a absent minded person who
had left behind bag. Apparently he grew suspicious when no one came
forward to claim the bag. However with the help a woman he lifted the
heavy bag and placed it on his shelf.
Thereafter when he opened the bag had found a bunch of plantains that
concealed the bomb. Beneath the plantains lay the deadly bomb. However
when the word got around people rushed in there to get a glance of it
not realising the danger of an explosion.
Many who saw the object confirmed that it was a bomb and they brought
it to the notice of a policeman on duty who informed the Mirihana
police.
HQI Mirihana Police station, Chief Inspector P.M. Samson said that
they had questioned several traders who had come to the Gangodawila fair
that day. He said many come to the Gangodawila fair from distant places
to sell their produce.
The police were investigating whether any trader who had links with a
terrorist group had smuggled the bomb to the fair that day. Thousands of
people rich and the poor flock to the Gangodawila fair to purchase their
weekly requirements of vegetables and other sundry items.
Meanwhile IGP Victor Perera rewarded the trader who found the bomb at
his boutique. He was presented a cheque for Rs 300,000 for tipping off
the police regarding the bomb. The IGP also cautioned the public to be
vigilant about a lorry and a car laden with explosives that had arrived
in Colombo.
There were intelligence reports on these two vehicles which are
believed to be hidden some where to be used on a target, he said
Two months ago, a haul of explosives were detected by the police at
the Palugaswewa at Kotawehera near the police check point. The lorry
driver and the cleaner were taken into police custody following the
detection.
A team, of CID officers are probing where the explosives were being
transported and its intended target. The explosives that weighed 940
kilos were concealed among coconuts and bags that contained yeast.
Two moths ago police found a 7 kilo bomb near the Police flats at
Maligawatte. The bomb was recovered on a tip off by a civilian person.
It was aimed at several high ranking officers in the Police and in the
armed forces who reside at the Maligawatte flats.
The officers use the road where the bomb was found.
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