Ja-Ela Politec robbers nabbed

Politec owner who suffered mentally for having lost money for daughter's wedding ... no more among the living
Robbers nabbed after 5 months through CCTV evidence

     Last May when the owner of Politec factory, Ja-Ela was carrying Rs. 75 lakhs with him from the bank with the idea of celebrating his daughter's wedding in grand style when a group of robbers who came in a white van robbed him of his money close to the gate of his own factory.

    At the moment when the robbers were  committing this crime they threatened the occupant in the car and had broken open the rear glass of the vehicle and darted in their vehicle with the parcel of money. In just a few minutes the whole game was over. Though no hurt was done to this businessman, Eardley Clare David (56) at the time of the robbery, he passed away from a sudden heart attack 10 days after this incident, most probably as a result of the shock he sustained and with his hopes going down the drain.

   His householders said that he spent his time thinking about this financial loss after having earned that money with the sweat of his brow and the mental defeat he faced, that he would not be able to celebrate the daughter's wedding in the manner he had envisaged.

   At the the robbery was taking place, the entire scene was recorded on the CCTV camera which was fixed on to the front section of the factory. The police made a request from the public during that period to give any evidence after the video was shown over media channels in order to arrest the culprits. The police yesterday (1) announced that as a result they were able to take the gang into custody. It was also reported that this same gang of robbers had committed about 12 similar robberies already.

   From the 12 robberies already committed, it has been estimated that a sum of over Rs. 150 lakhs had been so robbed. Police reported that these robbers had engaged in the robberies quoted in areas such as Kotahena, Mutwal, Ekala, Aturugiriya and Ja-Ela using a white-coloured van, threatening the victims by showing weapons.

   The members of this gang are, Weragoda Kankanamge Sunitha alias Ruwan, S. Susil Silva alias Susi, Hettiarachchige Prasanna Sujeewa Kumara and Watareka Gamage Athula Sanjeewa Madanayaka.

   This gang had on most occasions targetted individuals who had withdrawn money from banks such as the Hatton National Bank and the Commercial Bank and the robbery was committed in a very systematic manner.

   The robbers also confessed that they had shot dead one person who was carrying a sum of Rs. 5 lakhs from HNB and the murder took place because the victim struggled with them.

  Even on the occasion when this Ja-Ela, Ekala Politec factory robbery which brought death to Mr. Eardley Shantha Clare David had died after an aftermath of this incident, the robbers had waylaid him after finding out that he was to withdraw such a large sum of cash. This information they were able to get from spies they had employed at the banks for this very purpose. These criminals had further observed how the victim had withdrawn the cash and deposited it in a certain place in the rear section of his car. They had subsequently taken shrewd precautions not to keep pace with the would-be victim's vehicle upto the moment the latter had driven the car close to the gates of the factory. According to their plan, they had made use of the lapse of time taken to open the gates after parking it opposite the gates; at which moment they had pounced on their victims with weapons in their hands, threatening Mr. David.

   The watcher who opened the factory gates too was threatened and unfortunately because his life too was in danger, he had remained still without taking any action. In just a couple of minutes the robbers were able to flee from the scene of the crime after having broken the rear glass of the car of the businessman and taking the parcel containing the money. After they left, the businessman had got out of his vehicle and related this tragedy to those in the vicinity and other workers in the factory, with people in the street joining in. Though the number of the van was noted and the information was conveyed to the police,it was later found that the vehicle too was a van robbed from Grandpass area in the year 2010.

    Mr. Eardley Shantha Clare David (56) residing at 240 (C), Kimbulapitiya Road, Kadirana, Negombo passed away after this unfortunate incident. This father who was having dreams for many months about celebrating his daughter's wedding on a grand scale had spent the last few days of his life in mental agony and though it had been planned to celebrate the wedding on the arranged date after discussion from both sides, it was only the funeral that had to be conducted on that date.

    Mr. David was a father of 2 children and the wedding had been arranged for his elder daughter.

The CCTV footage which provided evidence to arrest the suspects, below