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Tenants in for shock as strangers occupy the house
View(s):A family who had legally rented a house in the Dehiwala area were in for a shock last week when they found that another family claiming ownership to the place had broken into the premises, removed their goods and was forcibly occupying the house.
The house, located on Siriwardena Road, was used by the tenant, a businessman dealing in CCTV cameras and air conditioners, largely as a store. The house itself was fitted with CCTVcameras to ensure additional security.
When the tenants returned last Saturday they found their vehicle missing, the valuable equipment strewn all over the garden, while three CCTV cameras fitted for security purposes had been removed after scaring the caretaker. On further inspection they found that the lock of the main door had also been changed.
Police were alerted soon after. On the following day, a man, his wife and their son were arrested by a Dehiwala police team led by Crimes Inspector Rajiv Hettiarachchi, the Officer in Charge of the station.
“Investigations revealed that they had damaged eight new CCTV cameras, the three cameras that were fitted in the house and other items. They had also removed the Digital Video Recorder (DVR) and erased the data,” the officer said.
The three persons arrested were residents of Nedimala, Dehiwala. They had claimed that they had ownership of the house, following a land dispute. However, Police investigations had found that the house had been rented out on the instructions of its owner, who is overseas.
The three suspects, were produced last Monday at the Mt Lavinia Magistrate’s courts and remanded until Thursday. Later, they were released on bail.
IP Hettiarachchi said if there was a dispute over the ownership of the house, the persons claiming ownership should have resorted to legal action, instead of trespassing.
The suspects have been charged with unlawful entry, breaking into a house and robbery. The case has been fixed for May 31.