A close relative of the overseas organised crime figure known as Kanjipani Imran was shot dead in Maligawatte on Monday afternoon, police said.

The shooting took place on Sangharaja Mawatha, according to NewsFirst and Hiru News. Ada Derana placed the scene near the BCC Bridge in the same area.

Police Spokesman ASP F.U. Wootler said two gunmen who arrived on a motorcycle carried out the shooting and fled, NewsFirst reported. Ada Derana and the Daily Mirror each described a single attacker who arrived by motorcycle and escaped after opening fire. The victim was wounded in the attack and later died of his injuries.

Hiru News reported that police said the man was understood to be an uncle of Kanjipani Imran, and that he owned a building materials shop. The other outlets described him only as a close relative. Police have not publicly released his name.

Police point to a gang dispute

Preliminary investigations indicate the killing is linked to a clash between organised criminal groups, police told NewsFirst, who treated it as a targeted attack.

No arrests had been announced at the time of reporting. An investigation is under way.

Context

Kanjipani Imran is one of the organised crime figures Sri Lankan police say is directing criminal activity from abroad. Officers arrested an alleged associate of his in Ja-Ela in April, and later rejected as “completely false” reports that the man had been preparing bomb attacks in Colombo.

The shooting comes on the same day three organised crime suspects held in Malaysia — including an alleged close associate of Kanjipani Imran — were flown back to Colombo under police escort.

It also follows a run of shootings and weapons cases in the Colombo area that police have attributed to rivalries between crime groups, including a grenade attack on a house in Ratmalana on August 5 that investigators say was ordered from overseas.

Update — police suspect ‘Kudu Anju’ ordered the killing

Investigators now believe the shooting was ordered by the organised crime figure known as “Kudu Anju”, who police say is living in France, Ada Derana reported later on Monday.

Police suspect the attack was carried out in retaliation for the recent killing of a close associate of “Kudu Anju” in Ratmalana. They have not identified that case publicly.

Ada Derana said the shooting took place at about 1.20 p.m. near a building materials shop on Sri Sangharaja Mawatha, and that the victim was taken to the Colombo National Hospital, where he died. Its later report described two attackers arriving on a motorcycle, matching the account NewsFirst carried earlier and revising the single-gunman description in its first report.

NewsFirst identified the victim as a 54-year-old businessman from Kirulapone. Police said the gunmen used a revolver and fled immediately. His name has still not been released.

Closed-circuit television footage from a building near the scene captured the shooting, according to Ada Derana. Two police teams have been assigned to the investigation.

“Kudu Anju” is also named in the case of “Ratmalane Saima”, the alleged Kanjipani Imran associate returned from Malaysia the same day. Police say Saima once worked with Kudu Anju before moving to Imran’s network.

Update — victim named, had no criminal record

Police have identified the man killed as Mohamed Asmi Mohideen, a 54-year-old businessman from Kirulapone, NewsFirst reported on Tuesday.

Initial investigations found the deceased had no criminal charges against him, Police Spokesman ASP F.U. Wootler said. He was a relative of Kanjipani Imran, but police said he carried no criminal record of his own.

The gunman opened fire while the victim was standing near a hardware shop on Sangharaja Mawatha, firing three shots from a .38-type revolver before escaping on a motorcycle.

The Western Province North Crimes Division and the Kotahena Police are running a joint investigation to trace the shooter. Police continue to attribute the killing to a conflict between two organised criminal gangs.

Sources