Fled from Indian jail, had Indian passport
Notorious for having close links with terrorist groups in Pakistan
Intelligence sources revealed that Mohammed Siddique, who is said to be major drug trafficker from Sri Lanka, was arrested in Oman while disguised as an Indian national and holding an Indian passport. Sources also revealed that according to an operation carried out by the Indian security and intelligence agencies regarding Mohammed Siddique for a long time, they informed Oman authorities about his visit to the country.
It is said that the arrest took place in an area close to Abu Dhabi border. It is said that Mohammed Siddique, who is said to be a mastermind behind the smuggling of large-scale drugs into Sri Lanka, is married to the sister of a powerful drug trafficker in Pakistan in addition to his marriage to a woman here.
Mohammed Siddique has been staying in India in an area close to the Nepalese border earlier.
It is also said that the two underworld criminals named Makilangamuwe Sanjeeva and Gotha Asanka had also stayed with him.
It is learnt that Sanjeeva and Asanka has been arrested by Indian defence officials and they had found the whereabouts of Siddique after questioning them.
But clear information is still not a available as to whether Sanjeeva and Asanka are still in Indian custody.
When some members of the security officials here had asked for information from India on the basis of their personal contacts, the India officials had only confirmed the arrest of Mohammad Siddique on an unofficial level.
It has been revealed that Mohammad Siddique has been given a long prison sentence by a Court in India and India has even issued a red notice against him by the Interpol.
It is said that Siddique had been arrested in India for that crime and later he had escaped from the prison. Accordingly, the Indian security forces have launched an operation to arrest him.
It is said that the Indian security forces are currently working to bring Siddique, who is in the custody of Oman, to India.
Siddique is notorious for having close links with extremists and terrorist groups in Pakistan.
In 2003, the Western Province North Crime Division arrested five persons including Mohammad Siddique while transporting heroin in a jeep in Boralasgamuwa.
After being remanded in custody for a long time, he was released on bail and later he fled the country and stayed in Dubai and Pakistan.
It is said that instead of bringing heroin to Sri Lanka by boat through India, Siddique had started bringing heroin to Sri Lanka by hiding it in containers from Pakistan.
Siddique had also launched a drug distribution network from here to the Seychelles and Maldives.
After conducting a long investigation, the Police took steps to obtain a red notice against him from the Interpol.
As a result, Mohammad Siddique and Wele Suda were arrested in Pakistan by the Pakistani security forces and handed over to Sri Lanka. A Police team from the Criminal Investigation Department went and brought Siddique to Sri Lanka in March 2015.
He was detained by the Criminal Investigation Department under a detention order and brought before the Court in September and was remanded.
The net weight of the drugs arrested with Siddique in Boralasgamuwa was 8.3 grams, according to Government Analyst. After a long trial in that regard, the Colombo High Court on September 13, 2018, acquitted all the five accused in the case including Siddique. It was based on failure to prove the charges against him beyond reasonable doubt and conflicting evidence. After this he had fled to India.
Although India has issued a red notice against Siddique through the International Police, the Police information revealed that there is no such order against him from this country.
A senior Police officer said that even though Mohammad Siddique is a large-scale drug trafficker, there are hardly any charges against him in this country.
Gayan Kumara Weerasinghe