Sri Lanka Army officer and four soldiers arrested for attempted theft of gold

Sri Lankan authorities arrested an Army officer and four soldiers for attempting to steal a stock of gold hidden by the members of the defeated Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) organization. According to report in the Sinhala daily,The Divaina, an Army Lieutenant Colonel and four soldiers were caught digging the ground in Vellamulliwaikkal area where the last battles between the Sri Lankan Army and the LTTE took place in May 2009. Soldiers attached to the 29th National Guard have observed the group digging and informed the superiors. The suspects were arrested later at a road block by the 621 brigade of the Army as the suspects were trying to escape in a double cab vehicle, the report said. A high level probe is reportedly under way over the incident. It is believed that the fleeing LTTE cadres have left the gold they have taken from the civilians in the war-battered region. The Sri Lankan government in 2010 said it has recovered 110 kilos of gold and jewelry valued at over Rs. 490 million from the areas controlled by the LTTE after the war.