Father of two shot dead after entering cashew estate

By Hiran Piyankara Jayasinghe and Jude Samantha

Colombo, June 10 (Daily Mirror) - A 36-year-old father of two was shot dead after he and a group of villagers entered a cashew plantation in Wanathawilluwa to collect fallen cashew nuts, prompting police investigations and the arrest of eight suspects.

The victim, identified as Pradeep Susantha, a fisherman from the area, was killed during the incident that occurred in the early hours of yesterday at a cashew estate in Kaladiya.

Police said a group of about ten people had entered the plantation, which belongs to the Chilaw Plantation Company and is leased to a private party, when they came under gunfire allegedly opened by estate watchers employed by the lessee.

However, relatives of the deceased disputed the account, alleging that Susantha had been taken to a separate location by the watchers, shot dead and his body abandoned in a jungle area.

Family members said Susantha and the others had entered the plantation not to steal but to collect cashewnuts in an attempt to earn some income after rough conditions in the lagoon had severely affected their fishing activities.

"They were trying to feed their families. They are fishermen who have lost their livelihoods due to the rough seas," a relative said.

Residents described Susantha as the sole breadwinner of his family and said his death had left his wife and two children facing an uncertain future.

Wanathawilluwa Police have arrested eight suspects in connection with the shooting and are conducting further investigations into the circumstances surrounding the death.

Police are yet to determine the exact sequence of events and whether the shooting occurred at the plantation or elsewhere, as alleged by the victim's relatives.