Five suspects arrested over the assault on Journalist

The five suspects wanted in connection with the assault on Daily Mirror /Lankadeepa Aluthgama correspondent Thusitha Kumara De Silva and his wife were taken into custody by Kalutara Division Organised Crimes Detection Unit on Monday night.

The suspects, who are residents of the Kalutara and Beruwala areas, had reportedly been engaged in illegal artificial toddy production where some of them were being probed over the illicit liquor business in police custody and prosecuted by courts on various occasions.

With the assault incident on December 6th, these suspects had fled the area. However, the police were able to apprehend one of the suspects in a hotel in Tissamaharamaya, two inside a hotel in Neboda Puwakdolaella, another one near the Lanka Hospital at Narahenpita and another at the Soysa Pura flats in Moratuwa.

The injured journalist, Thusitha Kumara De Silva and his wife Anusha Kumari had been initially admitted to the Aluthgama hospital but later transferred to the Nagoda General Hospital for further treatment.

A police complaint had been lodged by the wife of the journalist to the Aluthgama police and on instructions from the DIG of Kalutara Division E. M. U. Vijitha Gunaratne, the investigations had been handed over to the Kalutara Division Criminal Investigation Unit. Meanwhile, a protest was held on Sunday afternoon at the Aluthgama town condemning this assault and the free media foundation of Kalutara together with several organisations had also deplored this assault.

Police believe that journalist Thusitha's role in exposing the illicit toddy production in the area would have led to this assault. The arrested suspects had been handed over to the Kalutara and Aluthgama police to prosecute the case. The suspects were to be produced before the Kalutara courts yesterday afternoon. (Sunil S Thanthriarachchi - Kalutara)