| Police yesterday said they raided a controversial casino set up in a government building at D.R. Wijewardena Mawatha and removed its gambling tables, furniture and other items to the police station.
An Anti-Vice Squad officer told the Sunday Times that although the casino was not in operation at the time of the raid on Thursday, they acted on the basis that it was illegal to keep gambling items at the Fisheries-Ministry owned Cey-Nor building.
The casino items, including some 140 chairs, were removed to the Maradana Police.
The raid, however, prompted the owners of the casino to lodge a complaint at the Police headquarters. They have said the police unlawfully removed the furniture and the equipment from the premises which they had rented out.
They claimed that they had a legal agreement on the rent arrangement and also had paid taxes to the Inland Revenue department.
The issue over the casino operating from a government building hit headlines last month, when UNP MP Dayasiri Jayasekara raised the issue in parliament. | 
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