The Akuregoda shooter has committed 20 murders.

Monaragala Headquarters Police reveal that the former navy sailor arrested on suspicion of being the second gunman in the attempted shooting and murder of Akuregoda lawyer Gayan Buddhika Mallawarachchi and his wife Nisansala, is connected to nearly twenty murders committed in the Southern Province.

Two other suspected underworld gang members who were hiding with this former navy sailor have also been arrested by the police. It has been revealed that this former navy sailor acted as the main gunman for 'Karandeniye Sudda', who is considered a powerful underworld gang leader in the Southern Province and is currently hiding in Dubai.

According to a senior police officer, this suspected former navy sailor has carried out fourteen shooting incidents in the Southern Province over the past few years. Interrogations have also revealed that in some of these shootings, two or three people died simultaneously. A former army soldier, suspected to be the first gunman in the relevant murder incident, was arrested by officers of the Homagama Divisional Criminal Investigation Unit a few days prior.

The suspected former navy sailor has stated to the police that he does not know the names of many of the people he killed and that he carried out the murder contracts given by 'Karandeniye Sudda' without any hesitation. Police investigations have revealed that 'Karandeniye Sudda' paid him millions of rupees for these murders, and two hundred thousand rupees for the contract to kill the lawyer and his wife.

Interrogations of the three arrested underworld gang members revealed that they had planned to go from Monaragala to Mannar yesterday (25) in the early hours, and from there escape to India by boat disguised as fishermen. After escaping to India, they had also planned to travel from there to Dubai. The suspected former navy sailor had assumed another person's identity, and a fake national identity card prepared for this purpose was also taken into police custody. Information that this former navy sailor was the second gunman in the incident of the murder of the lawyer and his wife was revealed during further interrogations conducted by the police.

All this information was revealed during interrogations of the former navy sailor by a team of officers from the Monaragala Headquarters Police. In addition to the arrested suspect, it has also been revealed that a disciple of 'Angoda Lokka' and another individual had visited and stayed at this house ten and seven days prior.