No one has yet claimed the bodies of 09 people who died in the Horana elderly home fire - Loku Aiyā released

It has been revealed that no relatives have yet come forward to claim the bodies of 9 out of the 14 individuals who died in the fire that broke out at "Senehase Kædælla" detention center, located in Batagoda, Anguruwathota, which housed people with various disabilities. These facts were revealed yesterday (11) before Horana Chief Magistrate Ms. Lakmini Vidanagamage, and it was stated in court that relatives of the other five deceased individuals have come forward to claim their bodies.

The Magistrate ordered the release on bail of Isuru Anushka, a 38-year-old suspect who was arrested on the charge of operating this detention home unsafely without proper security measures. The suspect, who appears on the TikTok social media network under the name "Loku Ayya" (Big Brother), was ordered to be released on a cash bail of one hundred thousand rupees and two personal bails of one million rupees each, and an order was also issued prohibiting him from traveling abroad. The suspect was presented before the court for this hearing via Skype technology.

Anguruwathota Police informed the court that it was extremely difficult to rescue the people inside the detention center because its doors and windows were locked at the time the fire broke out. Furthermore, the police revealed that the suspect did not take any steps to inform the police or the fire department about this great disaster, and instead, he videoed the fire at that time and uploaded it to his TikTok account.

Due to this unfortunate fire, 14 people lost their lives and four others were injured and are receiving treatment in the hospital, while 51 detainees were safely rescued. It was further revealed in court that detainees were admitted to this institution under official letterheads of various social service organizations, including Divisional Secretariat offices.

Further investigations into this matter are being conducted by a team of officers including Anguruwathota Police Station OIC Police Inspector Asanka Rajakaruna, and the relevant case is scheduled to be recalled on June 25th.