Five police officers, including a Sub-Inspector, have been arrested by the Criminal Investigation Department over the alleged abduction of a businessman and theft of more than two kilograms of gold worth over Rs. 100 million, police headquarters sources said.
The incident took place on 18 March 2023, when the suspects were attached to the Colombo North Divisional Crime Investigation Bureau. The officers, in uniform at the time, allegedly abducted the businessman, threatened to kill him and seized the gold in his possession, The Island reported.
The arrests were carried out by a special unit of the CID on the instructions of the Attorney General following an internal investigation. The suspects are currently serving at five different police stations, indicating they had been dispersed across the country since the 2023 incident.
The Sub-Inspector was attached to the Wellawatte police station. A Sergeant was serving at the Kobeigane Police Station. The three Police Constables were attached to Sevanagala, Thelikada and Badulla police stations.
The case is one of the largest publicly disclosed allegations of police personnel using uniformed authority to carry out a robbery in recent years. The Rs. 100 million value of the stolen gold equates to roughly two kilograms at current market prices.
Further investigations are being conducted by the CID. Charges have not yet been formally filed in court.
The arrests follow a wider series of police accountability actions ordered through the Attorney General’s department. CID has also recently issued a public warning about impersonation-based cyber scams, part of a broader push to restore confidence in policing. Sri Lanka’s ongoing anti-narcotics campaign Rata Ekata has recorded over 156,000 arrests since launching in late 2025.
