The Gampaha High Court yesterday (17) sentenced five individuals to death over the brutal killing of an unmarried man and the attempted murder of three others in the Welagedara area 25 years ago.

The court found that the group had broken into a house in Diyakawita, Welagedara, on the night of October 31, 2001, or a nearby date, and attacked the residents with stones, clubs, and swords. The assault left one man dead and three others seriously injured.

Delivering judgment, High Court Judge Rashmi Singappuli ruled that the father, mother, their two children, and another accomplice were guilty of murder and grievous assault, imposing the death penalty on all five. (Newswire)

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The National Water Supply and Drainage Board has announced that an emergency water cut is in effect in the Mahara and the Gampaha Pradeshiya Sabha areas from this morning (19) until 8.00 am tomorrow (20).

In a statement, the Water Board said the disruption was caused by an emergency breakage in the main water supply pipeline located near the Kadawatha Central Expressway.

The Water Board further stated that the necessary steps are being taken to distribute water using bowsers to prevent any inconvenience.

Authorities have urged residents in the affected areas to use water sparingly until services are restored. (Newswire)

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Priests and nuns staged a silent protest in front of the Negombo Municipal Council today, condemning the recent assault of a catholic priest by six police officers from the Gampaha Division Crimes Investigation Unit’s motorcycle squad.

The protesting priest and nuns were seen holding placards condemning the assault. 

Meanwhile, it is reported that the six police officers have been suspended from service following the incident.

The priest, who serves as an assistant estate manager at a church-administered farm in Kotadeniyawa, was attacked while returning from a service at the Dippitigoda Church. He was reportedly travelling by motorcycle and dressed in full clerical attire at the time.

The suspects allegedly assaulted the priest and left him by the roadside. He was later admitted to the Negombo Hospital for treatment. 

The Police officers were arrested in connection with the incident and produced before the Gampaha Magistrate’s Court, during which they were ordered into custody until January 29, when an identification parade is scheduled to be held. (Newswire)

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The Welisara Magistrate’s Court yesterday (14 Jan) imposed fines totalling Rs. 300,000 on three traders in the Gampaha District after they admitted guilt in cases filed by the Consumer Affairs Authority for selling rice above the maximum retail price.

According to the Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA), each offender was imposed a fine of Rs. 100,000.

According to court proceedings, the raids revealed the following violations:

• Ekala area, Ja-Ela: A shop was found selling Keeri Samba rice at Rs. 308 per kilogram, exceeding the approved price. Fine imposed: Rs. 100,000.
• Ja-Ela public market: A trader was caught selling Samba rice at Rs. 275 per kilogram, exceeding the approved price. Fine imposed: Rs. 100,000.
• Palliya Road, Kandana: A shop was detected selling Keeri Samba rice at Rs. 280 per kilogram, exceeding the approved price. Fine imposed: Rs. 100,000.

The Consumer Affairs Authority confirmed that strict legal action will continue against traders violating controlled price regulations. (Newswire)

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The Principal of Bandaranayake College in Gampaha was escorted out of school by the Police following a protest today. 

A protest was staged in front of the school for nearly four hours by students, parents, and old boys, urging for a more suitable principal to be appointed to the school. 

Amidst the protest, a group of parents, old boys, and professors held a discussion with the incumbent principal, after which it was decided that he would step down.

The decision led to the protest being called off and the principal informing the media that he would report to the Education Ministry and accept any post offered to him. 

The principal was later escorted out of the school by the Police at around 01.00 pm. (Newswire)

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A 12-hour water cut has been implemented in several parts of the Gampaha District today, according to the Water Board.

Issuing a statement, the Water Board said that the water cut has been imposed from 08.30 am until 08.30 pm.

The water cut has been implemented to facilitate essential maintenance work at the Sapugaskanda Grid Substation.

As such, the water supply has been disrupted to the Peliyagoda, Wattala, Ja-Ela and the Katunayake-Seeduwa Urban Council areas and Kelaniya, Biyagama, Mahara, Dompe, Katana, Minuwangoda and Gampaha Pradeshiya Sabha areas. (Newswire)

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One person has been injured in an accidental shooting in the Uggalgoda area in Gamapaha today.

According to the Police media unit, the man who was travelling on a motorcycle had failed to heed othe rders by the Police to stop for an inspection.

Police officers had given chase and had blocked him, and a scuffle had broken out between two parties when the officers had attempted to arrest him.

At the time, the firearm of a Police officer had accidentally discharged, injuring the man on his foot.

The injured individual has been admitted to the Gampaha Hospital. (Newswire)

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An eight-and-a-half-hour water cut will be imposed in several parts of Gampaha District on Thursday (27 Mar), the Water Board announced. 

According to the Water Board, the water supply will be disrupted from 8.30 a.m. to 05.00 p.m. on Thursday.

The water cut will be implemented in the Peliyagoda, Wattala, Ja-Ela, Katunayake, Seeduwa Municipal Council areas and Kelaniya, Biyagama, Mahara, Dompe, Katana, Minuwangoda and Gampaha Pradeshiya Sabha areas during this period. 

The Water Board states the water supply is being disrupted due to essential maintenance activities in the electricity system of the Biyagama water treatment plant. (Newswire)

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Deputy Minister of Labour Mahinda Jayasinghe has informed Parliament that a Criminal Investigations Department (CID) probe has been requested into land deals involving former First Lady Shiranthi Rajapaksa in Gampaha. 

Addressing the Parliament today, Mahinda Jayasinghe said a request has been made from the Acting Inspector General of Police (IGP) in this regard.

The Deputy Minister said the lands in the Imbulgoda and Makola areas had been purchased in 2012 and sold in 2023.

He revealed in Parliament that a plot of land purchased in Ihala Imbulgoda in 2012 under the Mahinda Rajapaksa Spiritual Foundation for Rs. 500,000 has been sold for Rs. 10 million, adding that the owner of the land is one Shiranthi Wickramasinghe Rajapaksa of Carlton House Tangalle.

Mahinda Jayasinghe further said that another plot of land in Makola that was purchased for Rs. 01 million has been sold for Rs. 12 million, of which the owner was Shiranthi Wickramasinghe Rajapaksa of Carlton House Tangalle.

The Deputy Minister of Labour said inquiries into the land deals have revealed that the deeds had been drawn up and signed at the Temple Trees and had been transferred in 2023 to a person residing in Nugegoda.

Addressing recent media reports that he had forcibly entered lands belonging to Buddhist Temples and monks, Mahinda Jayasinghe Jayasinghe produced documents to claim that the lands belonged to ordinary citizens. 

The Deputy Minister said that he had visited the lands to inquire about the ownership as issues had been raised by the original owners and area residents. (Newswire) 

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A 30-year-old man was injured in a shooting this afternoon by two gunment on a motorcycle in Weeragula, Gampaha.

Police reported that the victim, a resident of Veyangoda, was found lying on the road following the attack and was admitted to Gampaha Hospital for treatment.

Police are investigating the incident. (Newswire)

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The body of a 14-year-old girl suspected to be murdered has been found in a toilet pit under construction in the Akkarawita area in Gampaha. 

The Police said the child’s mother had filed a complaint with the Gampaha Police yesterday claiming that her daughter has been missing since 02 December. 

A probe launched by the Gampaha Police based on the complaint had found the root cause of the disappearance. 

In her complaint, the child’s mother had raised doubts about her second husband. 

Based on the complaint and other information collected during the probe, the man had been arrested on suspicion.

During interrogation, the man confessed to murdering the child and disposing of her body in a toilet pit under construction on the rear side of the house, and closing the pit with a concrete slab.

Police officers have been deployed to the scene of the crime, while the Magisterial Inquiry is to be conducted today. The Gampaha Police is conducting further investigations. (Newswire)

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Sri Lanka Police has initiated a special probe into the use of camouflage uniforms of the Police Special Forces for a sports event in a school.

Police Spokesman DIG Nihal Thalduwa told the media that one person had been apprehended in connection to the incident. 

“Children of a school in the Gampaha area have participated in their sports event with the camouflage uniforms of the Special Forces. Cadets were found to have dressed in the uniform. The clothes of security forces cannot be used without prior permission,” he said. 

The Police Spokesman said that an investigation was launched into the matter on the directive of the Inspector General of Police (IGP).

Stating that there are Police officers assigned to the respective areas to coordinate the cadet groups, he said if the uniforms had been used with the knowledge of those officers, disciplinary action would be taken against them.

DIG Thalduwa also revealed that an individual was arrested in the Anuradhapura area on suspicion of having sewn the uniforms for children for the sports festival by being in possession of the uniform cloth.

He added that the arrested individual did not have the necessary permit to sew police uniforms or the camouflage uniforms of the Police Special Forces. (Newswire)

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One person was reported dead in a shooting incident reported in the Katugasthara area in Gampaha today.

According to the Police, the victim, a 34-year-old man, had sustained serious injuries in the shooting and had died upon admission to the Gampaha Hospital. 

The Police further said that another individual had also been injured in the shooting which had occurred around 04.00 pm. 

The shooting had reportedly been carried out by unidentified gunmen on a motorcycle. (Newswire) 

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The ‘Jayagamu Sri Lanka’ programme, organized by the Ministry of Labour and Foreign Employment to bring the services of its institutes to the doorstep of the public, will next be held in the Gampaha District.

According to the Ministry of Labour and Foreign Employment, the ‘Jayagamu Sri Lanka’ programme will be held on April 05-06 at the Gampaha Municipal Stadium.

All citizens of Gampaha who are engaged in services and jobs related to the district, as well as those who are looking for jobs at home and abroad, have been urged to participate in the programme. 

The Gampaha leg of the ‘Jayagamu Sri Lanka’ programme commences following its successful completion in the Vavuniya District on March 29-30.

The programme focussed its attention on providing foreign jobs, benefiting the youth community, professional community, overseas job seekers and their family members from the district.

The ‘Jayagamu Sri Lanka’ program was organized with the intervention of the Ministry of Labor and Foreign Employment under the motto ‘Smart Wadden’s Smart Struggle to Vavuniya’.

The program held at the Vavuniya Gamini Maha Vidyalaya Stadium was attended by a large number of officials representing government institutions along with young people who are looking for jobs in the Vavuniya district, job seekers who are expecting to go abroad, parties in need of job counselling and encouragement, children of families of expatriate workers, and school students. (NewsWire)

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The Cabinet has approved the establishment of a National Hospital and a Children’s Hospital in the Biyagama area in Gampaha. 

According to the government, due to the high population growth and the industrialization of the Gampaha District, the district acts as a major service delivery centre.

The government said these developments have resulted in the demand for health services increasing and the need to build a National Hospital and a Children’s Hospital to meet that demand. 

Therefore, it has been proposed to build a National Hospital and a Children’s Hospital in the Gampaha district under the public-private partnership system. 

The Cabinet has approved the combined proposal presented by the President and the Minister of Health to implement the proposed project.

The project will be implemented after acquiring two plots of land of 7 acres and 3 roods located in the village officer’s domain in Biyagama North and providing basic infrastructure. (NewsWire)

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A Buddhist monk has been shot dead at a temple in the Gampaha District, the Police said. 

According to the Police, the deceased monk has been identified as 45-year-old Venerable Kalapaluwawe Dhammarathana Thera.

The monk is reported to have been killed in a shooting at the Malwathuhiripitiya Kahatana Temple in the Gampaha District. (NewsWire)

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The removal of the indigenous tree “Crudia Zeylanica” located in the Daraluwa area in Gampaha, which caused a controversy in 2021, was carried out based on Cabinet approval, Minister Bandula Gunawardena told the media today.

Cabinet spokesman Minister Bandula Gunawardena stated that the removal of the endemic tree was a policy decision by the government. 

Minister Gunawardena further stated that the Cabinet approval in this regard was sought by him and approval was thereafter granted. 

“A comprehensive study was conducted and it was found there are 15 palm trees over 40 years in the area. There are 25 trees which are between 12 – 15 feet in height. Any person who requires the trees can visit the area and acquire them,” he added. 

The Cabinet Spokesman further stated that plans have been made to plant 200 trees in place of the “Crudia Zeylanica”.

“Revealing these details to the Cabinet I requested permission for the removal of the said tree. Environmental experts have also supported this decision. The Cabinet is of the view that when there are several more “Crudia Zeylanica” trees in various parts of the nation, one tree alone cannot be protected. The Cabinet also pointed out that this one tree was causing a loss of Rs. 15 billion to the government. Thereby, the Cabinet granted approval for its removal taking into consideration the country’s economy,” Minister Gunawardena said. 

In 2021, concerns were raised against the removal of the tree by many environmentalists and wildlife officers after it was revealed that the tree was to be relocated due to the construction of the central Expressway. 

At the time, the tree was brought into the spotlight after Gampaha District Forest Officer Devani Jayathileke challenged authorities for violating an earlier agreement to protect the tree. (NewsWire)

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A Police complaint has been filed after a couple was handed over the body of the wrong infant by the Gampaha Hospital, the Gampaha Police Headquarters stated. 

According to Lankadeepa, a woman had undergone a c-section birth at the Sri Jayawardenapura Hospital on May 29 after which the baby had been transferred to the Gampaha Hospital and was receiving treatment at the Premature Baby Unit.

The hospital yesterday handed over the body of a 22 days old infant, during which the couple inspected the baby and informed that it was not their child. 

The preliminary magisterial inquiry was conducted by the Gampaha Acting Magistrate Mahesh Herath at the hospital yesterday.

The said couple had also inspected the child during this process during which the mother had revealed that the child was not the one she had given birth to at the Sri Jayawardenapura Hospital. 

The Police stated that the woman’s husband had also inspected the child and confirmed that it was not their infant.

The Police further stated that a DNA test will be conducted to identify the child’s biological parents. 

The Gampaha Acting Magistrate has ordered the Police to conduct a DNA test. (NewsWire)

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An individual has been arrested from the Gampaha area for having financially defrauded the public of nearly Rs. 1.5 million using a fake online loan scheme.

The Police stated that the suspect had advertised concessionary loans targeting the public, including those selling vehicles.

Investigations have revealed that the suspect had obtained the National Identity Card (NIC) and bank account details of the victims, after which he had purchased SIM cards under the acquired NICs.

The suspect had thereafter, used the SIM cards to hack into their bank accounts and retrieve money, targeting salary day.

The Police stated that the suspect is reported to have financially defrauded people from various areas, with the Police uncovering details of 15 such scams from the Gampaha area alone.

Further investigations revealed that the suspect was in possession of the details of 70 bank accounts and was prepared to financially defraud an amount of nearly Rs. 3 million. (NewsWire)

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