The Sri Lanka Police has been instructed that officers in civilian clothing cannot engage in the inspection of vehicles.
The directive was issued by the Acting Inspector General of Police (IGP) Deshabandu Tennakoon today.
The instructions come after a lorry driver in Narammala was shot dead by a Police Officer in civil attire this week.
The 40-year-old lorry driver, a father of three, is reported to have died on Thursday (Jan 18) after allegedly being shot by an officer from the Narammala Police, who was in civil attire.
According to eyewitnesses, two Police officers in civil attire had chased after the lorry for failing to heed their commands to stop the vehicle for an inspection at a checkpoint in Dampelessa, Narammala.
Chasing the lorry on a motorcycle, they had stopped the vehicle, after which the senior Police Officer is reported to have loaded his weapon before approaching the driver, and had later fired at him, the eyewitnesses further claimed.
The Sub-Inspector (SI) who had fired at the victim has been arrested and remanded until January 23, 2024, by the Narammala Magistrate’s Court. (NewsWire)
