Camouflaged vehicles with hooch rounded up

by Jayampathy Jayasinghe

Luxury tinted cars that resemble VIP cars are being used to transport illicit liquor to distant places to mislead policemen on duty at checkpoints on the main roads.

On a tip off, police intercepted a dark blue luxury car with tinted windows that looked like a VIP security vehicle and found 450 bottles of Unlawfully Distilled Spirits (Kassipu) concealed in the back seat of the car on Thursday, police sources told the "Sunday Observer."

The detection was made by OIC Central Anti Vice Striking Force (CAVSF) Inspector Duminda Balasooriya and party at Pinwatte, Panadura in the vee hours of Thursday morning. Police set up a trap and intercepted the blue car travelling at a high speed towards Panadura transporting illicit liquor worth over Rs.100,000. The liquor was found in several polythene bags.

Police questioned the three suspects in the car and learnt that the illicit liquor was being transported from Ja-ela to be delivered to illicit liquor dealers at Panadura and Kalutara. Police said the luxury car worth over Rs 25 million was owned by a wealthy illicit liquor dealer in Ja-ela.

The three suspects were produced before the Panadura Magistrate.