Murder...

most foul is becoming most common, as the spate of killings continue:

by Anuradha Kodagoda

The spate of killings in the recent weeks has caused a sense of apprehension in the public, exerting pressure on the authorities to ensure safety and prevent the country from spiralling into a vortex.

However, the spate of recent killings across the country have sent shock wave.

The discovery of decapitated bodies and severed limbs in the Diyawanna Oya and other areas, the murder of a Police SI in Panadura, the discovery of a mutilated body in a cess pit, the murder of a woman in Kahawatta, have all served to ratchet up the sense of fear and anger in the minds of the public.

Unfortunate

ASP Ruwan Gunasekara

Speaking to the Sunday Observer, Police Media Spokesperson, ASP Ruwan Gunasekara said, “it was unfortunate that so many incidents had taken place in the past few weeks, but claimed he had his doubts as to whether they were inter-related. The killing of the Sub Inspector (SI) of the Bandaragama Police Station, Ruwan Wijepala Wijewardana Palihawadana on April5, is still being investigated.

We haven’t found sufficient information to arrest the criminals. However, we are conducting investigations and hope to find the culprits soon", he said.

He also said decapitated bodies and body parts found in several areas recently are mysterious. Although we publicized in the media about the bodies, so far nobody has come forward to identify them.

Intriguing

What is more intriguing is that no complaints have even been lodged against these missing people and we are seeking public help to identify these bodies to continue with the investigations”, he said.

As for the bodies and body parts found in the Diyawannawa, Welikada and Dematagoda areas, earlier, police investigations were handled by the respective police stations, Mirihana, Welikada and Dematagoda, but now investigations have been handed over to the CID on the instructions of IGP N.K. Ilangakoon.

“A DNA test will be conducted. A court order has been sought in this regard. This will help to trace any close relatives of the missing people. The public can help by providing any information about these missing persons to the CID on Telephone No. 0112320145”ASP Gunasekara said.

The murder of 39-year-old Chandrani Swarnalatha in Kotakethana, whose body was found floating in a stream near her home has now been revealed as being committed by her son..

This killing is a grim reminder of the series of killings in Kotakathena since 2008. In the past few days, the media reported that Chandrani's husband, brother and son were suspects of the crime. " Since this is the eighteenth murder of a woman in this village, almost every villager was questioned.

The irony is that police were questioning these villagers not for the first time, which has been thrown into the limelight with these killings. The husband of the recent victim was questioned previously for the murder of a different female too but he was released on bail as there was no evidence against him", the police spokesman said.

So far the Police have arrested suspects in nine of the eighteen murders and court cases are pending.

Link

According to ASP Gunasekara, there was no link between the suspects in each case. “The only link we see in this series of murders is that the victims were all women. It is important to look into these killing from a socio-political perspective.

However, we are closely monitoring the current situation in this area.

The recent victim had died due to severe injury caused to the skull with a heavy weapon.

She had also received deep cut injuries on her body. Investigations are conducted under the direction of an ASP of the CCD. as far as the recent crimes are concerned. We are hopeful that we will be able to arrest the culprits shortly”, he said.

On July, 20, 2008, the first of the eighteen killings was reported from Kahawattha, Kotakethana with the murder of 56- year- old Sellama Mariyani, Kotakathena came into the limelight with two more murders that of P. Nayana Nilmini (52) and her 19- year-old daughter, K. C. Selllahewa. With the killing of the mother and daughter, investigations took a different turn, bringing into focus hidden political agendas and drug dealing. This information was not revealed in any of the previous murders.

Drug issue

The reason for the mother and daughter murder was reportedly a drug issue. A person identified as Raju, the brother of the Member of the Godakawela Pradeshiya Sabha, L.H. Dharmasiri, Raju's wife and a three wheeler driver were being interrogated by the CID regarding the murders.

A wary public fearful of the country descending to a different form of violence, want the Government to take the necessary steps to ensure the safety of all citizens, speed up the investigation and take immediate action against the suspects.

Researching the reasons

Prof. Mayura Samarakoon

Prof. Mayura Samarakoon, leader of the group of academics who investigated the situation in Kotakathena, Kahawatte, Senior Lecturer, in Social Sciences Dept. of Sri Jayawardhana University, Prof. Mayura Samarakoon, “Kotakethana is an isolated village where there are lots of uneducated villagers who don’t trust the Police and the law and order in the country. "These villagers are so illeterate that they don't even go to the Police to lodge a complaint, because they think it's of no use. The village is politicized by a group of Pradeshiya Sabha politicians and the entire village is run according to them.

According to the findings of the research that we carried out for nearly two years. Illegal drugs and alcohol are the main reasons behind this pathetic situation in this village.

"Most of the men are miners. Most of them are not at home most of the time as their jobs entail being outside the home.

There were many extra-marital affairs and conflict between husbands and wives were the order of the day. Most men were hooch addicts. Illicit affairs played a crucial role behind some of the murders which led to the disintegration of village life in Kotakathena.In our research we made a few suggestions which could help to overcome the situation This village was not in the limelight as it is a few miles away from Kahawatte.

It is isolated. It is important to improve infrastructure facilities of the village as they don’t have proper roads, transport facilities, electricity and other basic needs. However, when looking at the entire scenario, what is starkly obvious is that the Police has not played the role of a peace keeping force and there were many lapses on the part of the Authorities.

A serious doubt that in our minds was whether the culprits were being questioned and taken into custody in cases where there was sufficient evidence to prove their culpability".

18 March 2015: Body parts found in Diyawanna Oya

Media reported the discovery of a body with a severed left arm in the Diyawanna Oya behind Parliament.

More human body parts were discovered in the Dematagoda and Welikada Police divisions. Police is seeking public help to identify the bodies to conduct further investigations.

Chandrani Swarnalatha’

5 April 2015: Another murder in Kahawatta

Chandrani Swarnalatha’s husband lodged a complaint with the Kahawatta police that his wife was missing when he had returned home around 2.20 am on 5 April, after attending a funeral in the neighbourhood. There was blood as well as pieces of flesh in the house. The body was found the next day in a stream near her house.

Her son has been identified as the main suspect. Investigations are on-going.

April 5, 2015: SI slain in his sleep

The killing of Sub Inspector (SI) of the Bandaragama Police Station, Ruwan Wijepala Wijewardana Palihawadana, while he was asleep at his residence in Panadura. According to Police Spokesperson, ASP Gunasekara, the Police have no clue about the culprits of the murder.

The brutal killing had taken place inside the victim’s house while his two children and wife slept in another room.

The SI’s throat was slit in the early hours of Monday or the previous night after he went to bed around 11.00 p.m. on Sunday.

The victim’s wife was the first to witness her husband lying in a pool of blood around 4.30 a.m. on 6 April

The post-mortem examination revealed that the death was caused due to the cut in the throat which had resulted in draining of blood from the body..

Raped, strangled and dumped in a pit

by Thakshila Jayasekara

The post-mortem on 66-year-old Mallika Madurusinghe, a wealthy woman of Minuwangoda and wife of the landed proprietor, Wilfred Jayasinghe, indicated that she was raped and had severe head injuries resulting from a heavy blow. Seven of her ribs were broken and she was strangled to death.

A mother of two sons, she was living with her husband and younger son, while the elder son lived elsewhere with his family. Mallika had been reported missing and the police could not find any trace of her whereabouts. Both the police and the family members however suspected that she must have left her residence while being distressed over some family matter.

Fateful day

March 21 was a fateful day for the Wilfred Jayasinghe family, when Mallika's younger son noticed something blue floating in a toilet pit. Investigations unveiled the mystery of what had happened to Mallika, unfolding a tragedy no son wants to stumble into. For, found in the depths of the pit was the decomposed naked body of Mallika who had been missing for several days.

On the day of the inquest, the Minuwangoda ASP, who was directing investigations observed the suspicious behaviour of the 18-year-old family helper. He confessed to his innocence when the police grilled him over the murder. On further questioning, it transpired that a 35-year-old man, identified as Nishantha Sampath of Rajasinghapure, Minuwangoda had been present at Mallika's residence on the day her disappearance was reported to the police.

Although the man in question protested his innocence to the police, the family help who had right through maintained his innocence broke down under severe grilling by the police, and confessed, “We committed this crime after consuming liquors,” explaining, “The Gedara Mahattaya told me he was not properly looked after by his wife. He did not have his meals at home. You have to kill her and dump her body into the toilet pit.”

The decomposed naked body of Mallika was found in a toilet pit

The family helper said the man of the house, Wilfred Jayasinghe had promised to pay him Rs 200,000 to commit the crime. “When I refused, he promised me Rs 300, 000,” he said, claiming that the Mahattaya had instructed him to scream that there was a snake in the room, and when Nona (Mallika) had come into investigate, Nishantha had thrown a cloth over her and clobbered her on the head with an iron-bar.

Consciousness

“Then Nishantha raped her, though I refused to do so,” he said, adding that when they removed the cloth that covered her face she had regained consciousness. “Then we strangled her to death. We then put the body in a wheel barrow and dumped it into the toilet pit along with her night gown and pair of slippers,” he elaborated, claiming that shortly after the deed Nishantha had left the house while he remained, and that the elder son, Kapila Mahattaya had lodged a complaint with the police, upon reaching home and finding his mother missing. He said around midnight the day of the murder, Mahattaya, had enquired from his about the contract and that he had said it was ‘OK'. “He gave me an advance of Rs. 20,000 and I asked him to pay the balance later when I leave home for the New Year,” the The helper, identified as Racial Jayakumar alias Roshan who confessed to the murder hails from Nawalapitiya. He is not known to the Wealthy landed proprietor Wilfred Jayasinghe who has tea estates in Nawalapitiya where Roshan's parents worked.The three suspects were remanded. The law would hold whether the murder was committed on a contract by the husband Wilfred Jayasinghe or he was implicated to escape the suspects’ culpability to the murder. The Minuwangoda police are conducting investigations under the direction of Senior DIG Pujitha Jayasundara and DIG H.P. Kularatne and SSP Munasinghe.