Hiran Kosala murder gunmen were staying at Deshabandu's Kandy house

The controversial shooting that took place on the 22nd in a Singer electronics store located in the center of Ambalangoda town, and the information revealed thereafter, have now created a significant discussion in the country. Police investigations have now confirmed that the underworld gunman and the motorcyclist who came to carry out this shooting, targeting Hiran Kosala, the manager of the store, had hidden in a

house in the Central Province belonging to Deshabandu Tennakoon, who held one of the highest positions in the country's police force, after the incident.

With this revelation, the relevant murder incident has taken a different turn, and a comprehensive investigation has been launched into the underworld connections and the involvement of police officers behind the incident.

Investigations revealed that the gunman who came to commit the murder and the person who brought him arrived from the Central Province in a car, and after reaching the Ambalangoda area, they went by motorcycle to carry out the shooting. After committing the crime, the motorcycle they used was found abandoned in the Kaludawala area by the Ambalangoda Police. Further investigations revealed that this motorcycle was stolen from the Hanwella area last year. Police sources confirm that after the shooting, the suspects returned to Deshabandu's house in the Central Province in the same car they arrived in.

Although the house belongs to the former police chief, he does not reside there, and a caretaker was employed for the house's security. According to police investigations, information has been received that the killers had stayed in that house from the 7th to the 21st. It is reported that investigation units have received information that this house belongs to former IGP Deshabandu Tennakoon and that it was built by 'Karandeniya Sudda,' an underworld leader believed to be hiding in Dubai. However, no definite information has yet been revealed as to whether the gunman and his accomplice stayed there with or without the knowledge of the former police boss who owns the house, and a special investigation is underway regarding this.

Based on intelligence received that the killers were hiding in the said house, a team of Police Special Task Force officers raided the house, but the suspects had fled the scene before that. A suspicion has now arisen as to whether information about the police raiding the house was leaked from within the police itself beforehand. The police have extensively questioned the house's caretaker regarding the incident, and information has been revealed that a group posing as contractors for a roof repair had stayed in the house. It is said that individuals known by the aliases 'Anura' and 'Podi Mahaththaya' were instrumental in executing this plan, and they are close associates of Karandeniya Sudda.

Approximately eight individuals have been arrested on suspicion in connection with the Kosala murder. Those arrested include a 46-year-old construction contractor residing in the Kadawatha area of Mahara, a 39-year-old healthcare assistant working at Balapitiya Base Hospital, a bus driver from the Pitigala area, a fisherman from the Sirakandura Watta area of Rathgama, and a woman residing in the Gammadduwatta area of Dodanduwa. Notably, a pistol-type firearm, fifteen live rounds for it, and a revolver with ten rounds were found hidden in the arrested woman's house by the Police Special Task Force. Information has also been received that this woman has maintained long-standing connections with Karandeniya Sudda, who is in Dubai.

Santiago Hiran Kosala de Silva, who was murdered, was a businessman who contested for the mayoral position of Ambalangoda in the last local government election. He had also faced previous murder charges, with accusations filed against him for the killing of two individuals in 2014 and 2015. Police state that he maintained close ties with underworld leaders such as Karandeniya Sudda, Kosgoda Sujee, and Podi Lassie. Recent analysis of Kosala's mobile phone records has revealed that he recently contacted 'Loku Patty,' who is detained at Boossa Prison, and that the two, who had been estranged for some time, had re-established their relationship. Information has been revealed to the police that the murdered Hiran Kosala was someone who assisted in the financial transactions of underworld figures and acted as a 'cashier' for Easy Cash transactions. This murder is suspected to be the result of a power struggle between two underworld gangs operating in the Southern Province.

On the day of the murder, when the gunman broke into the store and attempted to shoot, the first firearm did not function. He then ran to the motorcycle, retrieved the other firearm from his accomplice, and carried out the shooting. CCTV footage confirmed that even after the first shot, the killer returned to the store to confirm whether the injured person had died. The car that transported the gunman and the motorcyclist has also been taken into police custody, and it has been revealed to belong to a contractor from the Kadawatha area. An individual named 'Guthiya,' arrested in the Kollupitiya area, has been identified as a key suspect who aided and abetted this murder.

Due to the involvement of the former Inspector General of Police's name in this incident, further investigations have been handed over to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on the orders of the current IGP. Information has been received that this murder contract was executed through an individual named 'Dena' residing in Dubai, and that Dasun Manawadu's involvement took place in it. Strong attention has once again been drawn to the issue of underworld members operating such crimes using mobile phones from within prisons, and the discovery of over 140 mobile phones from within prisons in the past few days is a clear testament to this. Police sources indicate that many more individuals are expected to be arrested in connection with this incident in the future.