DEAD BODY FOUND IN MAHARAGAMA LODGE

59 year old paramour found dead in
a Maharagama lodge charging an hourly rent

     Police are conducting inquiries on the sudden death which had taken place in a lodge in Maharagama. The deceased, is a 59 year old pensioner who had served at the Municipal Council, Dehiwala. He had been having an illicit affair with a 36 year old woman and had rented out the lodge at Maharagama on an hourly basis from time to time. Though the couple had patronised the lodge for the same purpose last Monday too, the woman concerned had disappeared leaving the man alone and his dead body was recovered in the lodge by the workers.

    While this is a mysterious death, it is not clear whether he had succumbed as a result of a heart attack or murder. Maharagama police have launched a wide-scale inquiry on the incident. This elderly couple had rented out the room for a sum of Rs.1,000. As the time of 1 hour allocated to them had elapsed and the bell too had rung, the manager who approached the room to notify them that the time-period was over had found the man lying on the floor dead, with only his underpants. On a prompt entry lodged at the Maharagama police, investigations had begun.

    It has been reported that the deceased is a resident of Dehiwala while the woman who had been in his company was a resident from Mt. Lavinia.

    Police expect to find reasons for the death after results of the postmortem due to be held at the Colombo Teaching Hospital as to whether death was due to natural causes or was a murder.

    The referred to lodge is situated at Perakum Mawatha in Maharagama and it is reported that both young and elderly couples frequent this place in hundreds to rent out rooms on an hourly basis while no check or inquiries are made on these visitors.

    Police suspect that the death of the person concerned has occurred as a result of a heart attack and that the woman had fled,  fearing that the illicit affair would come to light. It is because they were a couple having an illicit relationship. Whatever it is, the police say that there are no external signs to say that it is a murder. Further investigations are being conducted.