Gang terrorized Sri Lanka's northern city of Jaffna arrested

The police have arrested a criminal gang responsible for the recent wave of violent crimes in the Northern city of Jaffna, Sri Lanka military said.

Jaffna Commander Major General Mahinda Hathurusinghe said a group of eight people was arrested from Kopai when several members of the gang attempted to break into a house.

Following complaints received from the Jaffna civilians, the security forces and police had launched special search operations with day-night patrols and intensified road checks to screen suspicious vehicles and persons.

The organized gang has been involved in abductions and robbery in an attempt to embarrass the security forces in Jaffna, the Commander has said.

Major General Hathurusinghe has praised the support of the public in apprehending the robber gang. The arrests have been made on a tip off from a civilian, he said.

Tamil parliamentarians criticized the government for the rising crime wave of killings, abductions, and robberies in the last two months, despite the high security maintained by the Sri Lanka Army in the city.