Acting IGP instructed to expedite investigations into seven high-profile cases

The Ministry of Public Security has instructed the Acting IGP to expedite the police investigations into seven high-profile cases including the Easter Sunday bombings and the controversial Treasury Bond auction in 2015.

Instructions have also been given to expedite investigations into the death of businessman Dinesh Schaffter death and the death of a police officer during the shooting incident near the “W15” Hotel in Weligama in 2023, according to the Police Spokesman.

Police Spokesman DIG Nihal Thalduwa said the Ministry of Public Security has instructed the Acting IGP to direct special attention and to expedite several special investigations being carried out by the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) and other agencies as the progress of these investigations have been observed to be somewhat insufficient. 

He stated that specially the investigations being handled by the CID were recently subjected to a review and that instructions were given with regard to several cases identified including the bond scandal and the Easter attacks, to assign more officers and expedite investigations.  

DIG Thanduwa said instructions were also given to further investigate the suspicious death of businessman Dinesh Schaffter in 2022 and the disappearance of the former Eastern University Vice Chancellor Prof. S. Raveendranath in 2006.

With regard to the latter, he said that it was observed that investigations have not been sufficient and that the ministry instructed to expedite investigations and report on the progress.  

He said instruction were given to expedite investigations into the incident where a Police Constable was killed in a shooting carried out by officers of the Weligama Police Station near the “W15” Hotel in Weligama on December 31, 2023.

The police spokesman added that instructions were issued to launch investigations into the abduction and murder of Tamil journalist Taraki Shivaram, also known as Dharmaratnam Shivaram, on April 28, 2005 as well as to expedite probing the disappearance of activists Lalith Kumar Weeraraj and Kugan Muruganathan in Jaffna on December 9, 2011.