Three individuals accused of impersonating officers of the Sri Lanka Police and Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and stealing gold jewellery, cash and other valuables worth millions of rupees from victims across 15 police divisions over three years have been arrested.

The Gampola Magistrate’s Court has ordered that the three suspects be remanded until July 24.

The suspects, aged 40, 44 and 45, have been identified as residents of the Daulagala area in Udunuwara, police said.

Police investigations have revealed that the suspects had allegedly travelled to various areas, stopped vehicles and individuals travelling alone, posing as police officers or CID officers, making various accusations and conducting fake inspections, and robbed the victims’ gold jewellery and cash.

The suspects have allegedly carried out similar robberies in several areas, including Peradeniya, Kandy, Slave Island, Grandpass, Mawanella, Narammala, Pilimatalawa, Daulagala, Gampola, Galaha, Kegalle and Kadugannawa, since 2023. 

In one incident in the Kegalle area, the suspects allegedly informed victims that they had been instructed by a senior officer to bring them to the police station. They then escorted the victims to near the Kegalle Police Station, robbed them of cash and gold, and fled the scene.

Police also revealed that the suspects allegedly entered houses under the pretext of conducting search operations, confined the occupants to one place and stole cash and valuables from the premises.

Following intelligence gathered after a similar robbery in the Gampola area, one suspect was arrested in Peradeniya, while the remaining two were apprehended in Pilimatalawa, police said.

Investigations have further revealed that the suspects, who are allegedly addicted to heroin and other narcotics, had spent the proceeds from the robberies on procuring drugs.

Police said the stolen gold items had been melted down and sold in several cities, while a quantity of gold items that were sold in this way were recovered from a location in Kandy.

A three-wheeler, a knife, narcotic pills and melted gold items were also found in the possession of the suspects, police said.