A group of men who introduced themselves as police officers entered a house at Ritigala, Nawa Janapadaya, terrorised the occupants and fled with two gold chains and a mobile phone, police said. Villagers gathered after the alarm was raised, caught one of the suspects and handed him over to Welipenna Police.
The incident took place at about 8.30 p.m. on July 31, according to police, who said an investigation had been opened on a complaint from the owner of the house.
In her statement, the complainant said four men in civilian clothes claimed to be police officers and told her they needed to search the house. They took her mobile phone, confined her daughter and mother to the front room and held her and her husband under guard, before removing the gold chains worn by her mother and herself and fleeing in a car.
When she screamed, one of the group who tried to get away on a motorcycle was caught by neighbours, the complaint said.
Suspect in his sixties
The man handed over to police is a 60-year-old resident of Nilketawatta, Pannila, in Mathugama.
Police said information had also emerged about three other men said to have fled in the car, among them a man from Anuradhapura known as “Delo”. Officers are working to trace and arrest them.
Items left behind by the group and taken into police custody include two hunting knives, an iron rod, face masks, cellophane tape, two bottles containing kerosene, a sheet bearing a fake vehicle number, a motorcycle and a bag.
Welipenna Police are continuing their investigation.
Impersonation of officials has surfaced repeatedly in recent reporting. Deputy Minister of Industries Chathuranga Abeysinghe warned on Sunday that callers were using his name to demand money from the public, and urged people not to hand over cash or documents to anyone making such claims.
