Lexicon School student's murder: Director's statements are contradictory

A seven-year-old student studying at Lexicon International School, located in the Kandy, Mahaiyawa, and Wewelpitiya areas, died and another student was injured in an extremely tragic road accident that occurred yesterday (12) around 11:30 AM within the school premises. The two students involved in the accident were studying in the second grade at that school.

The young child who unfortunately died in this manner is Ravindu Kumarage, who resided in the Polgolla, Gunnaepana area.

At the time of the accident, the two students were washing their hands and drinking water from a tap located on the school grounds. At that moment, a modern motor car belonging to Rajakaruna, who is both the chairman and a director of the school network, drove forward and ran over these children. Hospital sources state that the other student injured in the accident has currently been admitted to the emergency treatment unit of the Kandy National Hospital, and his condition is not serious.

The school director, commenting on the accident, initially stated that after he arrived at the school with a driver and got off near the office, the driver parked the vehicle on a slope and went to another place, during which time the vehicle automatically rolled downhill. He further stated to the police that upon seeing the vehicle moving forward, he immediately ran and got into the driver's seat to try and control it, but his attempt was unsuccessful. 
However, eyewitnesses state that there was no other driver in the vehicle at the time, and that the accident occurred when the director himself was driving the vehicle and lost control of it. A parent who commented on the matter stated that the director might have provided false information in an attempt to blame someone else for the error of 'parking' the vehicle without the handbrake. It was also mentioned that the director's vehicle was parked at a somewhat elevated spot, which allowed it to easily roll downhill.

Kandy Headquarters Police, investigating the incident, have currently arrested the suspect director, and he is scheduled to be produced before the Kandy Magistrate's Court today (13). Due to conflicting statements from eyewitnesses and the suspect, the police have launched a comprehensive investigation, obtaining CCTV footage from the school premises to ascertain exactly what happened. This international school, which has been operating for about twenty years, maintains its branches in Kurunegala and Matale areas in addition to Kandy.

Further investigations into this accident are being conducted by a team of officers, including Chief Police Inspector Pradeep Kottage, the OIC of the Traffic Division, under the direct supervision of Chief Police Inspector Rasika Sampath Pathirana, the OIC of Kandy Police Headquarters.