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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