A wanted organised crime figure arrested in Oman was flown back to Sri Lanka early on Tuesday morning, police said, the latest in a run of repatriations of suspects Sri Lankan authorities say have been directing criminal activity from overseas.
Ada Derana identified the suspect as Dimuthu Chaturanga, known as “Summitpura Chatu”, a 28-year-old resident of Mattakkuliya who was the subject of a pending Interpol Red Notice. He was arrested in Oman and subsequently deported.
A team from the Criminal Investigation Department escorted him back to the island, NewsFirst reported. Police Spokesman Assistant Superintendent of Police F.U. Wootler confirmed the suspect had been brought from Oman.
Wanted in several cases
Wootler said the suspect was wanted in connection with murder, other serious crimes, drug trafficking and the possession of a bomb, according to NewsFirst.
Neither outlet gave details of the specific cases, the date of his arrest in Oman, or whether he had been produced before a court.
The two newsrooms render his alias differently: Ada Derana uses “Summitpura Chatu” while NewsFirst uses “Samithpura Chathu”. LankaNewz has used Ada Derana’s form, which matches its identification of him by name.
Part of a wider repatriation drive
The return follows a series of similar operations. Three organised crime suspects held in Malaysia — including an alleged close associate of Kanjipani Imran — were flown back to Colombo on August 10, an operation police later publicly defended.
Deputy Defence Minister Aruna Jayasekara said last week that 58 criminals wanted under Interpol Red Notices have been repatriated, though that figure sits above earlier police accounting of the Red Notice mechanism specifically.
