Kidnapped Sergeant released

by Asanga Warnakulasuriya and Trincomalee correspondent

THE Sergeant kidnapped by the LTTE was released yesterday and handed over to the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) officials in Sampur.

LTTE cadres along with their political leader in Trincomalee Elilan met SLMM officials around 2.30pm and handed over Army Sergeant 305690, H.G.Siriwardena without the AK-47 weapon, which was in possession when he disappeared on Saturday.

SLMM monitors accompanied him to the Kattaperichchan camp. Earlier, the Army claimed that the LTTE kidnapped Siriwardena near Kinanthimunai bordering the cleared areas while the LTTE claimed the Sergeant was arrested near Thangapoor.

Army sources said Siriwardena was returning to the Army detachment on a push bicycle after duty at the Kattaperichchan jetty point on Saturday morning. On his way, the Sergeant had gone in search of six soldiers who had gone to cut palmyra leaves for fencing.

Although the six soldiers returned to the base, the Sergeant had gone missing, military sources said. "He was in uniform and was carrying his weapon". The Army had received information that the Sergeant was taken in a LTTE cab to Trincomalee LTTE headquarters blindfolded.

Elilan told the Daily News yesterday that the LTTE cadres had taken the Sergeant into "custody" in Thangapoor along with his AK-47 weapon and compass.