Akuregoda murder plot by Dubai's 'Tutoo' - How brothers were trapped due to a Rent A Car company's GPS

Extensive investigations are currently underway regarding the incident on Friday, the 13th, when Attorney Buddhika Mallawaarachchi and his wife, Nisansala Wellalaarachchi, were shot dead with a T-56 firearm and a 9mm pistol in a supermarket car park in Akuregoda. The Criminal Investigation Department and the Western Province South Crimes Division, operating under the direction of Deputy Inspector General of Police Shamath Wijesekera, have launched these operations. The routes taken by the killers to arrive and escape have already been examined through CCTV footage.

As a result of these technical investigations, two brothers residing in Athurugiriya, who supplied a car and firearms for the killers' travel, were arrested by the police in Maharagama. These suspects, Nadun Kaveesha and Sanoj Kokila, aged 20 and 24 respectively, have been confirmed to be involved in the 'ice' drug trade. They arrived in a car rented for several days from an establishment in Pannipitiya (their route confirmed via GPS technology) and acted on telephone instructions from 'Malwane Tutu' and 'Modara Nipuna', who are currently abroad. Accordingly, they delivered a parcel of firearms, obtained from another party near an ATM in Wellampitiya, Angoda, to the killers on the day of the incident.

The special investigation team, examining the route the vehicle took to Akuregoda, observed someone approaching the vehicle and handing something over to it at a certain nearby location before the killers reached their target. The vehicle used by these suspicious individuals was immediately identified, and its ownership was traced. The vehicle was registered in a woman's name.

Investigators who contacted the woman learned that the vehicle had been rented out to a car rental service in Pannipitiya. Inquiries at that establishment revealed that an individual had rented the vehicle for three days. The car rental company had equipped the vehicle with GPS technology. This allowed them to precisely determine the vehicle's location at that moment. Accordingly, the car was located in Maharagama.

The 28-year-old individual known as "Polgasowita Dila," who was connected to this arms transport network, as well as two others from a hotel premises who allegedly provided security to the suspects, have now been arrested by the Western South District Crime Division. In this operation, which took the form of an organized crime network, the arms suppliers, transporters, and shooters did not directly know each other, and all coordination was handled by 'Tutu' from Dubai. The police have now uncovered all his phone data and contacts, and the two individuals who directly carried out the shooting have also been identified.

Although based on the suspects' statements, this murder was presumed to be orchestrated by 'Karandeniya Sudda,' his direct phone involvement in the murder plot has not yet been confirmed. However, investigators have observed that the shooters' behavior is very similar to the murder of Kosala, the manager of the Ambalangoda Singer showroom, which was previously carried out under the direction of Karandeniya Sudda. Considering information that suspects in those past crime plans stayed in a house belonging to a former Inspector General of Police, a strong public discussion has now emerged regarding potential connections between these criminal networks and high-ranking police officers.

Lawyers across the island went on strike in protest of this double murder, and when the arrested suspects were presented before the Kaduwela Magistrate's Court, no lawyer came forward to represent them. However, on behalf of the victims, over a hundred lawyers, including the President of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka, Mr. Rajiv Amarasuriya, appeared in court, and the police were granted permission to detain and question the suspects for 48 hours. This incident has also sparked a new legal and social debate regarding the professional ethics of lawyers representing criminals and the underworld threats they face.