Notorious druglords Harak Kata and Kudu Salindu who were brought to the country from Madagascar had created a scene without boarding the plane and had behaved violently at the Madagascar airport and tried hard to prevent them from being brought back to Colombo.
They had tried to remain in Madagascar by creating a conflict through that incident. However, officers had managed to control them strategically and to make them board the plane. The four officers of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and the Police Special Task Force (STF) and the two officers of the Madagascar Police were able to bring them from Madagascar to Kenya and from Kenya to Mumbai and finally safely to Sri Lanka.
A group of Sri Lankan lawyers had also gone to Madagascar to rescue the drug dealers when Harak Kata and Kudu Salindu and others were arrested in Madagascar. It is said that a President’s Counsel and two female lawyers were included in that group.
During the time when Harak Kata and Kudu Salindu were being detained in that country, they had even proposed to offer US dollars 600,000 to the police officers to release them from the custody of the security forces of Madagascar. Apart from that, information is now being revealed that millions in that country’s currency have been spent in an attempt to gain freedom.
Kudu Salindu has been living in Madagascar for a long time. Information has also been revealed that he had been running the drug trade while staying in the country as a businessman. Sources said that he is married to a woman from Madagascar and has a child with her. Harak Kata and others are said to have come from Dubai by jet to attend a birthday party organized by Kudu Salindu. When they had arrived in Madagascar, Kudu Salindu had been in Madagascar. Harak Kata had come to Madagascar with his wife and three others.
They were caught by security forces of Madagascar when they were about to return to Dubai. Kudu Salindu had been in the Dubai-bound team as well. A group of eight including Harak Kata and Kudu Salindu were arrested at Ivato Airport in Madagascar on March 1. Harak Kata and Kudu Salindu have been trying to free themselves by offering money to the security forces of Madagascar from the moment they were arrested. It is stated that the team of lawyers from Sri Lanka arrived prior to the lapse of 3-4 days of their arrest. They had tried their best not to hand them over to this country but to keep them in Madagascar.
The team of police officers comprising of four people from Sri Lanka travelled to Madagascar to bring back Harak Kata and Kudu Salindu, on 11 March evening.
It was on a flight belonging to Sri Lankan airlines from Katunayake airport. The team included the Assistant Superintendent of Police Mihidu Abeysinghe of the CID, Chief Inspector Rajakaruna, Officer-In-Charge of the Interpol Branch, Sagara Kulasekera, Assistant Superintendent of Police, Intelligence and Operations Division of the Special Task Force, and Chief Inspector of Police Nadeeka Silva, Officer-In-Charge of the Special Task Force Intelligence Division.
They had travelled from Sri Lanka to Mumbai and from there to Ethiopia and then reached Madagascar on the 12 March.
On the 13th, they took over custody of Harak Kata and Kudu Salindu. That is from Antananarivo Airport. An agreement has been reached with the police of Madagascar to take over Harak Kata and Kudu Salindu after they had been brought onto the plane. Due to their riotous behaviour without boarding the plane, the special police team from Sri Lanka had to take them over at the airport.
Even then, Harak Kata and Kudu Salindu had already been aware of the names of the police officers who had gone to Madagascar.
After being controlled by these officers, they had been brought to the international airport in Nairobi, Kenya on a plane from Madagascar. Plans had been made to arrive at the Mumbai airport in India on a plane belonging to a Kenyan airline. The group had to stay at the airport for about 10 hours, with Harak Kata and Kudu Salindu in their custody, until the flight to Mumbai, India was ready. When boarding commenced, the airline had informed the police officers that they could not allow Harak Kata and Kudu Salindu on board, stating that the security report had yet not been received. Accordingly, they had to remain at the airport until the next flight for about another eight hours until authorities of that country had been informed through the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Kenya and even obtaining special security.
They had then arrived in Mumbai India on the next flight from Kenya to Mumbai, without even handcuffing Harak Kata and Kudu Salindu, as they had not even been allowed to use handcuffs while on board the plane.
When this group arrived in Mumbai, with Harak Kata and Kudu Salindu, the plane that they were supposed to come from Mumbai to Sri Lanka had already left.
Therefore, this group, which was supposed to arrive in Sri Lanka, early morning of day before yesterday (14), arrived in SriLanka only yesterday morning (15) with Harak Kata and Kudu Salindu and that was on a Sri Lankan Airlines flight. Although the plane was scheduled to land at 5.30 in the morning, it was delayed by about two hours. This had been due to the fact that a passenger had suffered a heart ailment while taking off from the Mumbai airport.
A special police team of the CID had arrived near the plane flight number UL-142 which brought to Sri Lanka Harak Kata and Kudu Salindu amid various obstacles and took them into their custody.
The airport immigration and emigration department had carried out the necessary work near theplane and steps had been taken to bring Harak Kata and Kudu Salindu to the Colombo Criminal Investigation Department through the air cargo terminal of the Katunayake airport. The Police Special Task Force had provided special security during this endeavour.
During this time, there was strict security at the Katunayake airport, in the surrounding areas and on both sides of the road while taking them to Colombo.
Add new comment