The Sri Lanka Police Special Task Force has arrested three suspects in connection with drug trafficking activities linked to organised crime figure Batuwatte Chamara, following a targeted raid on Friday.
The arrests represent a continuation of the STF’s expanded cross-jurisdiction enforcement campaign launched after Public Security Minister Tiran Alles granted the unit broader operational powers on April 7.
Limited details were available in the initial report from NewsFirst, with the identities of the suspects and the location of the raid not immediately disclosed.
Batuwatte Chamara is a known organised crime figure whose network has been a recurring target for law enforcement agencies. The STF, originally established as a counter-insurgency force, has increasingly been deployed against narcotics and organised crime networks in recent years.
The operation comes on the same day police launched a separate probe into alleged assassination threats against another convicted underworld figure, Dematagoda Chaminda, at Boossa Prison — highlighting the ongoing parallel enforcement efforts against multiple organised crime networks.
Sri Lanka’s drug enforcement agencies have intensified operations ahead of the Avurudu holiday period, when authorities typically see increased narcotics activity alongside the seasonal surge in travel and social gatherings.
