Trawler skipper arrested, over Rs 10 mn recovered

By Shamindra Ferdinando

The Special Operations Unit of the elite Special Task Force (STF) has arrested the skipper of a multi- day fishing trawler used in midsea transfer of narcotics to be smuggled into Sri Lanka.

Acting on a tip-off received from the Directorate of Military Intelligence (DMI), police commandos on Tuesday afternoon (04) apprehended the suspect in the Tangalle police area.

The police identified the arrested person as a 32-year-old resident of Koskoratuwa, Sinimodera. They have recovered Rs 5,014,000 in cash, jewellery weighing 377 grammes, 10 grammes of heroin and one hand phone.

Having taken trawler operator into custody, the commando squad raided the home of the mastermind of the smuggling operation in the Thelikada police area. Police headquarters said that at the time of the raid, the main suspect hadn’t been there but law enforcement officers apprehended his father as he, too, was involved in the narcotics trade.

The raiding party recovered a pistol with two magazines, two hand phones, one satellite phone and Rs. 9,002,800 in cash.

The suspects have been handed over to the Police Narcotics Bureau (PNB) for further investigations.

Police headquarters said investigations were underway to apprehend the mastermind and other persons wanted in connection with the smuggling of drugs.

According to police headquarters, the 60-year-old suspect has been taken on a charge of aiding and abetting, and investigations would help identify some of those engaged in smuggling operations.

STF Commandant DIG Varuna Jayasundera confirmed the arrests made during the week. “We are jointly conducting investigations with the PNB,” DIG Jayasundera said.

The latest Indo-Pacific Defence Forum published by the US Military dealt with how international drug traffickers changed their operating methods against the backdrop of the seizure of 100 kilogrammes of crystal methamphetamine or meth (ICE) by the Sri Lankan Navy in early January 2021. The report titled ‘Methamphetamine seizure shows changing nature of region’s trafficking’ ascertained smugglers could be increasingly using sea routes to move in meth as the stuff generated more profits.

Police say they have observed an increasing number of detections of small quantities of ICE in many parts of the country. They say in spite of major detections in Sri Lankan waters, some consignments are reaching the intended users.

Navy headquarters said that during operations carried out in 2021 98 suspects had been arrested along with more than 158kg of meth.

Defence Secretary Gen. Kamal Gunaratne has warned the owners of trawlers not to engage in narcotics, as well as people’s smuggling.

According to data made available by Navy headquarters, heroin continued to be the main attraction among the drug users. “We have apprehended 119 foreigners and 22 Sri Lankans engaged in smuggling heroin in 74 detections in our waters as well as high seas,” a senior official said. The official placed the amount of heroin recovered on these occasions at 1,268 kgs.

The official said altogether the Navy took into custody heroin, Kerala cannabis and other drugs with a street value of Rs. 15.86 billion.

Responding to The Island queries, the official said that their efforts had been greatly strengthened by support provided by the international community. The arrest of over 100 foreigners and the seizure of several vessels underscored the importance of cooperation among governments to crackdown on drug smugglers. The official also pointed out the need to probe the nexus between those engaged in drugs and human smuggling.