Two suspects further remanded

by Sarath Malalasekera

Colombo Chief Magistrate and Additional District Judge Sarojini Kusala Weerawardena further remanded the two suspects in the assassination of former Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar till November 21.

The two suspects are Muttiah Shayadevan and Ishothor Arokkayanathan.

Judge Weerawardena directed the Colombo Crimes Division (CCD) probing Kadirgamar's assassination to produce a comprehensive report on Charles Gnanakone, who is detained on November 21.

Earlier, the court ordered to search 16 cellular telephone centres to obtain particulars related to investigations.

At the outset, Sub Inspector M. A.R. Rajapaksa of the CCD filing a further report in connection with the investigations submitted to court that investigations revealed that several persons had obtained cellular phones by producing forged National Identity cards.

SI Rajapaksa told court that a special police squad had been deployed to trace the main LTTE suspect allegedly involved in the killing and to trace the weapon used for the killing.

The investigating team forwarded all items collected at the scene to obtain expert evidence on several tests including DNA, fingerprints and ballistic.

The special investigating squad had also questioned Commanders of Kadirgamar's security division. The Special Police Squad deployed on the direction of IGP Chandra Fernando and conducted by Senior DIG Sirisena Herath are trying to ascertain whether the owners of the house where the LTTE assassin who fired sniper bullets through a window at Kadirgamar are the owners' close associates.

Kadirgamar was assassinated by a sniper bullet fired by an unidentified gunman in Colombo on August 12.

The Criminal Investigation Department, Colombo Crime Division Director Senior SP Sarath Lugoda, Colombo DIG Pujit Jayasundera and Colombo South Senior SP S.H. Dayananda are assisting in the investigations.