.jpg)
The committee headed by Senior Administrator Kenneth Fernando is to look into the incident and the cause for yesterday's incident, Sri Lanka News agency, Lankapuvath reported.
The clash erupted when a large number of police officers were deployed Sunday to carry out a drug raid inside the prison cells and also to find mobile phones smuggled in to the prison.
The prisoners had attacked the unarmed officers with stones and utensils during the raid injuring 44 police officers and 4 prison officials. Superintendent of Police Ravindra Karavita of the Special Crimes Operations Unit was among the wounded police officers.
According to local media reports 5 inspectors, 6 Sergeants, 5 Sub Inspectors, and 28 Constables have received injuries. Director of the National hospital Dr. Hector Weerasinghe however, said that none of the injuries were life-threatening. Several prisoners have also been injured and are receiving treatment at the Colombo National Hospital.
The Police Spokesman SP Prishantha Jayakody said the Criminal Investigation Division (CID) is carrying out investigations into the incident. The police will file new charges against the prisoners involved in Sunday's attack, the spokesman said.
According to the police, officers of several police stations including Kelaniya, Borella, Peliyagoda, and Mount Lavinia had been involved in the operations.
Meanwhile, the English daily The Island reported that a section of the Welikada prison staff is alleged to have instigated the inmates to attack the police officers as prisoners appeared to have been prepared to resist the police operation. Quoting an officer The Island said that the attackers had collected a large stock of stones that they hurled at the officers.
Sri Lanka's Minister of Rehabilitation and Prison Reforms DEW Gunasekara has also ordered an investigation into the clash.
No comments:
Post a Comment