News
Govt. Analyst rules out possibility of Dutch monk being killed
On two aspects examined so far
Toxicology report still being finalized
by Suresh Perera
Investigations conducted so far by the Government Analyst’s Department into two key aspects surrounding the mysterious death of Ven. Olande Jinarathana have ruled out the possibility of the Dutch monk being killed, a senior official said.
However, on the toxicology front, the bhikku’s body parts are still being examined to determine whether any poisonous substance in his blood had led to his death, he noted.
Apart from the toxicology report, which is still being finalized, an analysis of the piece of rope and the stone found tied to one of the monk’s legs plus an examination of the island hermitage and the scene where his body was fished out of the Polduwa lagoon have ruled out the possibility that he was killed, the official said.
The piece of rope was examined in detail by officers of the Government Analyst’s Department to ascertain whether the knot to hold the stone in place on one of the legs of the bhikku could have been tied by somebody else, he explained.
“On these two aspects, there was no credible evidence to suggest that the monk had been killed and his body dumped in the lagoon, he further said.
“After the toxicology aspect is finalized, we will be able to release the report”, he said.
Police investigators earlier said that the prelate may have committed suicide as the postmortem examination revealed that he had been alive at the time he was in the water (of the lagoon) as there was no sand found in his lungs.
Police investigations into the monk’s death were handled by special teams detailed by senior DIG Rohan Silva in charge of the Southern province.
“We probed all aspects of the bhikku’s death and there were no indications that he may have been killed”, the senior police official said.
Asked about the delay on the part of the Government Analyst’s Department in finalizing the report as the bhikku’s body was found on December 8, 2020, the official said that every possible detail has to be gone into, examined and analyzed as it has to be a 100% thorough and foolproof document.
He said that the department works until late evening even on Saturdays to clear the backlog of cases. There existed 27 vacancies which were filled only in September 2020 despite repeated attempts since 2017-18 to recruit the required cadre.
There is a backlog of 8,000 narcotics related cases, which are now being cleared, he said, while expressing optimism of overcoming the challenge by April this year.
The National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB) on Friday said the largest groundwater source discovered in Sri Lanka so far had been identified during tube-well drilling near the Pitabeddara Police Station.
Indrajith Gamage, geologist in charge of the Southern Province, said the source recorded a continuous flow of about 10,000 litres (10 cubic metres) per minute, marking the first instance in the country where a groundwater source of that magnitude had been found.
He noted that the previous largest groundwater source was discovered in the Madhu area, which recorded a flow of about 7,000 litres per minute.
According to the NWSDB, the tube well was drilled following geological studies of rock layers and the identification of underground water through fractures in rock strata using specialised technical instruments.
The Board said steps would be taken to distribute water from the newly discovered source to residents facing shortages in Pitabeddara, Morawaka and surrounding areas.
The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce has formally handed over its historical records to the National Archives Department, entrusting over a century of the nation’s commercial history to the country’s official custodians of heritage.
The archive, spanning from the CCC’s founding in 1839 to 1973, includes correspondence, meeting minutes, reports, ledgers, and publications that chronicle the development of trade, enterprise, and industry in Sri Lanka. Together, the records provide a rare and detailed account of the island’s economic evolution and the role of its business community in shaping national progress.
The Ministry of Defence said on Friday (13) that arrangements had been made to repatriate to Iran the bodies of 84 sailors who died aboard the IRIS Dena, which sank in the southern seas off Sri Lanka.
A special aircraft carrying the bodies departed from Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport on Friday, the Ministry said, adding that the repatriation was carried out in coordination with the Embassy of Iran in Sri Lanka.
The remains had been kept in two mobile cold-storage units at the Galle National Hospital before being transported to Mattala by lorry following a court order. Forty-five bodies were moved in the morning, while the remaining 39 were transported later in the day.
Earlier this month, the Iranian naval vessel suffered an incident about 40 nautical miles off Port of Galle while carrying around 180 personnel. Thirty-five rescued sailors were admitted to the Karapitiya Teaching Hospital, while 84 bodies were subsequently recovered.
Following the incident, Pete Hegseth confirmed that the Iranian vessel had been sunk in international waters by a torpedo fired from a submarine of the United States Navy.
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