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| Monday, 9 August 2004 |
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More teeth for police to fight underworld by Asanga Warnakulasuriya Minister of Public Security, Law and Order and Buddhasasana Ratnasiri Wickremanayake has called upon top Police officers to come up with proposals which add more teeth to the existing laws dealing with criminals and underworld gangs. At a top level security meeting held at the Ministry over the weekend, Minister Wickremanayake stressed that urgent measures should be taken to nab underworld figures who make use of loopholes in the existing law to avoid prosecution. The Ministry, as an immediate step to crack down on underworld crime, has instructed the Police to deploy Police mobile patrols, especially in the Western Province to nab criminals and underworld figures who frequently gather at casinos, night clubs and brothels at night, Ministry Secretary Tilak Ranaviraja disclosed. The Ministry is expected to make further recommendations to the Government to strengthen these laws, the Secretary added. IGP Indra de Silva has pointed out that the crime rate has increased mainly due to underworld warfare. Police had identified that disputes among underworld gangs had led to brutal killings especially in the Western Province, the IGP revealed. Of the 29 main underworld gangs, only three gangs are actively involved in crime while the rest had fallen apart after Police nabbed their leaders, the IGP said. Illegal weapons possessed by the underworld has also increased due to army deserters supplying illegal weapons to the underworld. DIG Crimes and Narcotics, Jayantha Wickremaratna said that an increasing number of drug addicts were involved in nearly 1,800 house breaking incidents reported during the first half of the year. The DIG warned the public to keep an eye on such suspects trying to break in into houses especially during the daytime. Senior DIG Bodhi Liyanage, Colombo DIG Sirisena Herath, DIG STF Nimal Lueke and several top Police officers attended the meeting. |
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