Godagama Car Sale owner who swindled billions arrested

Homagama Acting Magistrate Ms. Priyanka Maddumapatabendi ordered that the owner of a vehicle sales center, who was accused of defrauding vehicle buyers and sellers of nearly five crore rupees through a vehicle sales center operated in the Godagama area of Homagama, be remanded until today (25). The suspect thus imprisoned was named Mahabaddage Chamara Havantha.

Based on complaints made by about 15 aggrieved individuals to the Meegoda Police Station regarding the incident, the suspect has been arrested and produced before the court.

On a previous occasion, when the OIC of the Criminal Investigation Division of Meegoda Police attempted to intercept the suspect's vehicle and arrest him, the suspect reportedly hit the police officer and tried to flee. Accordingly, the police had reported facts to the court, including a charge of attempted culpable homicide. Furthermore, although the suspect was informed to come to the Meegoda Police to give a statement regarding the complaints made, it is said that the suspect did not appear at the police station for nearly 3 months. For this reason, the suspect's wife and the manager of the sales establishment were arrested on charges of aiding and abetting the said frauds and remanded until September 01 after being produced before the court.

According to facts revealed in court, the suspect had called the phone numbers in vehicle sales advertisements published in weekend newspapers, claiming that the vehicles could be sold within two weeks, and had them brought to his premises. Subsequently, he himself published newspaper advertisements stating that these vehicles were for sale and sold them to buyers who came to purchase them at a reduced price without the original title deed. The police revealed that the suspect had secretly sold the vehicles without the original owner's knowledge, informing the buyers to pay the remaining amount after receiving the title deed.

The police informed the court that after selling the vehicles, the original owners were also deceived by crediting a small amount to their accounts, presenting it only as an advance payment. The police further stated that complaints worth nearly 150 million rupees have also been received by the Homagama Special Fraud Investigation Division regarding these financial frauds.

Under the instructions of Meegoda Police OIC Inspector Dinuka Weerasinghe, OIC of the Minor Complaints Division Inspector Jayawickrama, Sub-Inspector Rusiru, Police Sergeant (44552) Saman, and Police Constables (92518) Lakmal and (102009) Sankalpa are conducting further investigations into this matter.