News
Acid thrown at female school van driver; one suspect apprehended
A suspect who was arrested in connection with an acid attack on a woman in Nugegoda was remanded till April 19 after being produced yesterday in the Gangodawila Magistrate’s Court. The 44-year-old suspect was one of two men on a motorbike who carried out the attack on Friday morning at Wijerama Mawatha in Nugegoda.
Police said the 63-year-old victim, a resident of the area, operated a school van service. She was driving her van that morning when the suspects blocked the path of her vehicle at around 6 a.m.The men had allegedly first tried to drag the woman out of her vehicle and failed. At this point, they had thrown acid at her face and escaped.
However, as the suspects were escaping, the rider had lost control of the motorbike, resulting in it going off the road and crashing. Bystanders who had witnessed the attack had then managed to apprehend the man who allegedly threw the acid, but the other suspect had escaped, police said.
Police added that the motorbike used in the attack did not belong to the suspects and that it had been borrowed from a friend.
Upon interrogation, the arrested suspect, a resident of Piliyandala, had confessed that he had been embroiled in a dispute with the victim over operating a school van service. He had alleged that the victim had got a group of individuals to assault him over the dispute and the acid attack was in retaliation.
Police have identified the second suspect involved and investigations are underway to arrest him. The victim of the attack is being treated at the Kalubowila Hospital for severe burn injuries.