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| Sunday, 18 July 2004 |
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| News Business Features Editorial
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Mystery death of millionaire pawnbroker Crime Sunday by Jayampathy Jayasinghe The big question that revolves on everybody's mind is where did the millionaire businessman pawnbroker, Kumudu Sarath Wimalaratne, go in his luxury Prado leaving his Kirulapone business premises around noon on Saturday before last. His wife Manori Wimalaratne identified her husband's body dumped on the back seat of his vehicle abandoned at W.A. de Silva Mawatha, Wellawatta with his head wrapped in a polythene cover and both legs tied together. She froze in horror witnessing her husband's body. There were also visible cut injuries on the neck. Obviously the victim was tortured to death elsewhere by the assailants and later brought to Wellawatta. According to the autopsy report, the victim had died as a result of being beaten with a blunt weapon. He was buried at Kanatte cemetery last Thursday amidst a large gathering. Kumudu Sarath Wimalaratne (47) was a wealthy pawnbroker and a jeweller who owned four pawn broking shops at Kirulapone, Koswatte, Nawala and Panadura. He was an affable and generous person who had no enemies, according to his family circle. He was devoted to his family. If so, why did somebody kill him? Obviously, it was a pre-meditated murder but strange enough the assailants didn't rob his luxury Prado vehicle worth several millions of rupees. Instead, they removed his valuable wristwatch worth Rs 100,000 and his expensive gold bracelets that he wore. Mrs. Manori Wimalaratne was at their Nawala home with her two children on Sunday morning when she received a telephone call from one of their employees that she had spotted her boss' Prado vehicle at W. A. de Silva Mawatha, Wellawatta. The employee, however, had not seen her boss' body inside the vehicle. In fact, Mrs. Wimalaratne had been frantically searching for her husband throughout Saturday night as he did not come home as usual. It was quite unusual for him to keep away from home on a Saturday evening. That's the day he met his buddies over a "drink" at his cosy home at Nawala. The killing cast a pall of gloom on the young family. According to some employees, Sarath Wimalaratne had left his Kirulapone office on Saturday around 11 a.m. alone in his Prado vehicle after receiving several telephone calls from some person. That was the day of the Provincial Council election. He was in a mighty hurry and had removed some documents. Some say he was negotiating to purchase a building in Colombo. Although he informed his wife that he was going to see a lawyer for a consultation, he had obviously gone elsewhere. The lawyer had later told Wimalaratne's wife that he had informed Wimalaratne regarding the cancellation of the consultation with him. If that was the case, where did Wimalaratne go? Was it a preposterous ruse of the killers to invite him to a particular place? He would have been quite unaware of the motive of the killers. There had been several death threats against Wimalaratne on several occasions although they did not want to elaborate on them, according to Wimalaratne's family circle. In fact, Wimalaratne had applied for a permit to possess a pistol for his own protection. But, it all happened too soon. However, there is a whiff of hope among family members that the killers would be arrested soon. Senior Supdt. of Police of the Colombo Crime Division (CCD) Sarath Lugoda has detailed a team of police officers to investigate the crime. |
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