Piliyandala bus bomb suspect escapes

A suspect arrested in connection with the April 25 Piliyandala bus bombing escaped from Police custody on Friday while being taken to the Judicial Medical Officer’s (JMO) office in Colombo for a medical examination, well informed sources said. The suspect was arrested in Wellawatte by the Army a few days after the bombing and was handed over to the Terrorism Investigation Department (TID).

On Friday, the man was being taken to the JMO’s office to obtain a medical certificate as he was to be produced before the Magistrate’s Court later that day. As the jeep in which the man was being transported neared the JMO office, he had jumped off and run away.

Police spokesman SSP Ranjith Gunasekera said he could not comment on the incident immediately.Meanwhile, 19 of the 27 suspects taken into custody in connection with the Piliyandala blast had been released after they were produced before the Kesbewa Magistrate’s Court on Friday.

Of the remaining eight, four are being held by the Colombo Crime Division (CCD) and the others by the Mount Lavinia police.