Sri Lanka Police arrested 540 people on May 8 in islandwide crime and narcotics prevention operations, after inspecting 27,615 individuals across the country.
Of those detained, 21 were directly identified in connection with criminal activities and 248 were warrant suspects, including 134 with open warrants. Officers also took 76 drunk drivers and 49 reckless driving suspects into custody, and apprehended a further 4,146 people for various traffic violations.
In dedicated anti-narcotics operations on the same day, police seized 1kg 513g of heroin and 4kg 467g of crystal methamphetamine, commonly known as “ICE.” A total of 817 suspects linked to drug-related offences were arrested in 796 separate raids carried out across the country.
The single-day tally fits within the wider Yukthiya / Rata Ekata operation launched in late October 2025, which has produced more than 156,000 arrests and over 1,917kg of heroin seizures over its first six months. Police have continued to target both retail-level drug distribution and warrant defaulters as part of the same enforcement push.
The operation runs alongside a separate proactive screening regime at Bandaranaike International Airport targeting suspected foreign cybercrime syndicates, with the Immigration Department this week urging the public to report foreign nationals living in residential neighbourhoods without verifiable purpose.
