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Dead
man tells terrible tale The serial
thriller appears to be too fantastic to be true. It allegedly began
when 31-year-old Udayakantha Jayathilake and his wife, residents
of Britain for several years, apparently got an idea of doing a
little bit of what Emil Saundaranayagam had done decades ago. They
wanted to take British insurance for a ride and they might have
done so if not for a smart brain not in Britain but in the medical
faculty of the Peradeniya University. According to the pieces put together by police detectives, the story went like this: Udayakantha
Jayathilake and his wife, in pursuance of their massive insurance
claim, came back to Sri Lanka some months ago and allegedly staged
a robbery and killing at Habarana on June 3. Everything appeared
to be brilliantly stage-managed - a burnt car with a body inside,
a weeping widow complaining to the police, expensive items reported
missing and all that. Ms. Jayathilake,
also allegedly playing a key role in the drama, had complained to
the police that her husband was missing from June 3 after he went
to Dambulla to buy some antique furniture. Soon after, the police
received information that a vehicle was found burning in the Habarana
area. The tip-off also appeared to be part of chasing the crooked
shadows. The police
went to the scene, saw a body in the burning vehicle and called
the Jayathilake family. On to the scene
came the third suspect - Mr. Jayathilake's brother. He identified
the body as that of Udayakantha. DIG Ananda
Jayasekera said that to give crime book credibility to the operation,
the victim's wallet had also allegedly been placed on the scene
with his identity and credit cards to further substantiate the case.
To back up the claim of robbery and killing, the family members
said a modern camera and other expensive items were not in the burning
car which he had hired from a rent-a-car company to go to Habarana. Almost everything
appeared to be in place for a gang robbery and killing and it was
probably only as a mere formality that the skeletal remains were
sent to the Peradeniya medical faculty for further tests, while
the insurance papers were sent out fast. The brains
behind the crime were leaving nothing to chance. The British High
Commission was also informed that a British resident back here on
holiday had been killed. Five months
passed by and then the wheel of death turned the other way. Forensic
experts at the Peradeniya University replayed the whole drama with
the shocking disclosure that the skeletal remains found in the burning
car at Habarana were not of Udayakantha Jayathilake but of a woman.
The Police
then set in operation the third part of the drama. They sent detectives
to secretly watch the Jayathilake home and find more clues on the
alleged double game. It paid off
and Udyakantha who had stayed under cover for some months was arrested
when he emerged from his Kandy hideout to go to Colombo. The camera
and other personal items, which his wife complained to be missing
from the burnt vehicle, had also been found in his possession, police
said. Udayakantha,
his wife and brother were produced in court while police are looking
for a fourth suspect who also played a role by finding a body to
be put in the burning car. Seeing her
dead son alive was apparently too much for the aged mother. She
collapsed and died soon after seeing her son. Peace
brokers intensify efforts His meeting
comes as the Norwegian Deputy Foreign Minister Vidar Helgesen arrives
in Colombo today. The Norwegian
delegation's visit will mainly focus on the establishment of the
Joint Task Force and the preparation for the next round of peace
talks in Thailand. The ongoing problems related to the cease-fire
agreement and the tense situation in the East will also be discussed. The Norwegian
delegation is scheduled to visit Hambantota today to meet MPs of
the district and local authorities while a meeting with the Hambantota
Chamber of Commerce has also been arranged. The main aim of the
visit to Hambantota is to obtain first hand knowledge on the economic
needs of the area. Mr. Helgesen
during his four-day stay will meet Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesignhe
tomorrow. Meetings with
President Kumaratunga, the Government's peace delegation and Opposition
Leader Mahinda Rajapakse are also scheduled.
Minister Rajitha Senaratne told The Sunday Times that those mediating between the President and himself had informed him that the meeting was due to take place. But an official
spokesman of the Presidential Secretariat had later informed him
there was no need for such a meeting. "I am
not sure whom I should believe," Dr. Senaratne said, adding
that "when the President's official spokesman discounts the
possibility of a meeting why should I go after them." Dr. Senaratne
said he felt that the change of position was due to the Supreme
Court determination on the 18th and 19th amendments being known. Presidential spokesman Harim Pieris told The Sunday Times there was a meeting arranged between the President and Minister Senaratne, but declined to elaborate. Former Minister
John Seneviratne had been the chief mediator between the President
and the minister. Mr. Seneviratne told The Sunday Times that several times he had spoken to the President and other senior members of the gesture made by Mr. Senaratne.
The LTTE had
assaulted three SEP members on 8th October in the Kayts Island where
a 27-year old father of three had suffered serious stab injuries,
the press release said. The SEP has
asked that the guilty LTTE members who made death threats and assaulted
the SEP members be immediately arrested. It has also said that LTTE
must discipline and punish all those involved in issuing death threats.
A week ago the World Socialist Web Site and SEP also launched an
international campaign against death threats made to three fishermen
by the LTTE when the fishermen refused to hand over money to the
LTTE to build a new office. The press release invites all human rights organisations and individuals committed to the defence of democratic rights to denounce the attack. Appoint
separate Governors to north and east, says SMP SMP Secretary
Ven. Elle Gunawansa Thera said his group believed that the demerger
of the province with two governors being appointed would ensure
stability in the east which was now being dominated by the LTTE. Accusing the
Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission of being biased, the Thera said the
SLMM was only calling on the Sinhala people to be calm but it failed
to ask Tamil schoolchildren and civilians to remain calm. He also said the SMP has opened an office in the east to entertain complaints by Sinhala and Muslim people who were subjected to LTTE harassment. Fears
of banned chemical in imported flour Before it was
banned by the national food advisory committee, two years ago, Potassium
Bromide was widely used to treat flour by milling agents. Strict
orders were issued to the Ceylon Wholesale Establishment to ensure
that Potassium Bromide was not used to treat flour. But with checks
not being conducted thereafter, flour producers are again allegedly
using this chemical agent "We are
very strict that it is not used and instead asked them to use Ascorbic
acid," Dr. A.M.L.Beligaswatte, former Director General Health
Services who was also a member of the National Food Advisory Committee
said. He said that
Potassium Bromide was banned from use as it could cause cancer in
the thyroid glands. Dr. Pradeep
Kariyawasam, Chief Medical Officer of the Colombo Municipal Council
who is also attached to the FAC when contacted by The Sunday Times
said checks would be resumed on Monday to ascertain if Potassium
Bromide is being used again to treat bread products and flour. |
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