Soldier and another arrested with two T56

A solider and a civil worker of the army had been arrested with two T56 assault rifles and other firearm equipment in Kurunegala, police said.

They said the Kurunegala police arrested the suspects with a T56 weapon and a magazine during a search of a suspicious motorcycle at Gowa Kotuwa Junction in Kurunegala on Saturday night. The weapon and the magazine loaded with ammunition were found when it was hidden inside the rider’s jacket.

The 46-year-old rider, a solider attached to the Buttala Army Camp and the 37-year-old civil worker attached to the Wathupitiwala Vijayaba Infantry Regiment, were identified as residents of Kurunegala and Hanwella.

Following the arrest of the suspects, the police searched suspect’s house using an explosive detection sniffer dog. The police recovered a T56 assault rifle, T56 weapon cleaning kit, an Italian made air rifle and other equipment used by the army were recovered from the rider’s house.

The suspects were produced in the Kurunegala Magistrate’s Court yesterday and obtained 48-hour detention order for further questioning.