Fifteen suspects granted bail

Panadura Group Correspondent

Panadura Magistrate Thusara Rajasinghe released on bail 15 suspects involved in the conspiracy to murder Panadura Provincial High Court Judge Malanee Gunaratne early this year.

Each of them were ordered personal bail in Rs. 100,000 with Rs. 500,000 in surety bail with two sureties and to report to the Colombo Division Crime Bureau on every last of Sunday the month till the case concludes. The Magistrate further remanded R. Wellalage, a jailor of the Kalutara Remand Prison pending further investigations.

The 15 suspects released on bail are M. Thusara Hemantha, S. Nalake, Ajith Kumara de Silva, Manjula Sri Lal Jayawardena, Shantha Lal Priyadarshane, L. Linton Fernando, Indika Udaya Kumara, Ugith Shantha, Nilanthi Lalithangani, Nanda Malanee, Nandawathi Fernando, R. Surangani Menike, Chandra Karunatilleke, Prison Guards Leslie Peiris and R. Pothupitiya of the Kalutara remand. They were arrested in March 2009 by Inspector Sarath Dasanayake, OIC of the Panadura Division Special Crimes Branch on information collected from three suspects taken into custody regarding a poster campaign launched against the Panadura Provincial High Court.

The Colombo Division Special Crimes and Fraud Investigations Bureau took over the investigations. State Counsel Madhawa Tennakoon appeared for the prosecution with the police officials.