News
Police suspect foul play over death of retired teacher living alone
By Norman Palihawadane
The Cinnamon Gardens police investigating into the recent mysterious death of a retired music teacher, residing alone in her luxury house, have shifted their focus toward treating the incident as a potential case of murder.
Police said that the Judicial Medical Officer who examined the body of the 75-year-old retired teacher, who lived at Wijerama Road, Colombo 07, had observed some evidence that death was caused by strangulation and given an open verdict, ordering some body parts be referred to the Government Analyst for further inspection to obtain scientific evidence.
In addition to the police investigation, the Colombo South Criminal Investigation Unit has commenced another probe.
A senior officer said that the deceased had been identified as Mithrani Fernando Smith. She was originally from Kolonna but lived in the house at Colombo 07 since her marriage to her husband who had been a businessman. After her husband’s death, two years back, she had lived there alone. As per the preliminary investigations the death occurred on 15 Dec.
Police were informed of the death by the victim’s younger brother’s son who is an engineer by profession. He, who is a resident of Moratuwa, usually parks his car at the victim’s house. When he came there on 15 Dec.,, he found that the doors were open and electricity was disconnected. He informed the police on 119. In response to the call, the Cinnamon Gardens police arrived and found the body of the victim lying on the floor and noted that there were few blood stains. Post mortem on the body found no wounds on the victim and police suspects that the blood flowed from the victim’s mouth.
A senior police officer said that it seems that someone had strangled the elderly woman to death and tried to show it off as a death caused by electrocution because closer to her body there was a floor polisher with broken wires and the trip switch of the house was off. Police collected three empty tea cups and collected their fingerprints. They also collected nine rottis that had been prepared by the victim by using the gas stove. However, the gas cylinder was missing from the house. In addition, a laptop and her mobile phone, too, were missing, police said.
It has been found that the victim had been a talented pianist and was giving private lessons to some students. The police said that they would record statements from her students. .
During an operation conducted in the dark hours of 01 Jan 26, the Sri Lanka Navy seized an Indian fishing boat and apprehended 11 Indian fishermen while they were poaching in Sri Lankan waters, off Kovilan of Kareinagar, Jaffna.
The Northern Naval Command spotted a group of Indian fishing boats engaging in illegal fishing, trespassing into Sri Lankan waters. In response, naval craft of the Northern Naval Command were deployed to drive away those Indian fishing boats from island waters off Kovilan.
Meanwhile, compliant boarding made by naval personnel resulted in the seizure of one Indian fishing boat and apprehension of 11 Indian fishermen who continued to engage in illegal fishing in Sri Lankan waters.
The seized boat (01) and Indian fishermen (11) were handed over to the Fisheries Inspector of Myliddy, Jaffna for onward legal proceedings.
Latest News
Tri-Forces donate LKR. 372 million, a day’s pay of all ranks to ‘Rebuilding Sri Lanka’ Fund
Members of all ranks from the Sri Lanka Army, Sri Lanka Navy and Sri Lanka Air Force have collectively donated a day’s basic salary to the ‘Rebuilding Sri Lanka’ Fund, which was established to restore livelihoods and rebuild the country following the devastation caused by Cyclone Ditwah.
Accordingly, the total contribution made by the Tri-Forces amounts to LKR. 372,776,918.28.
The cheques representing the financial contributions were handed over on Wednesday (31 December) at the Presidential Secretariat to the Secretary to the President, Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake.
The donations comprised LKR. 250 million from the Commander of the Army, Major General Lasantha Rodrigo; LKR. 73,963,879.71 from the Commander of the Navy, Rear Admiral Kanchana Banagoda and LKR. 48,813,038.97 from the Commander of the Air Force, Air Marshal Vasu Bandu Edirisinghe.
Secretary to the Ministry of Defence, Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuyacontha, was also present on the occasion.
The Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) has submitted a proposal to the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) seeking an 11.57 percent increase in electricity tariffs for the first quarter of 2026, citing an estimated revenue shortfall and additional financial pressures, including cyclone-related damages.
According to documents issued by the PUCSL, the proposed tariff revision would apply to electricity consumption from January to March 2026 and includes changes to both energy charges and fixed monthly charges across all consumer categories, including domestic, religious, industrial, commercial and other users.
Under the proposal, domestic electricity consumers would face increases in unit rates as well as fixed monthly charges across all consumption blocks.
The CEB has estimated a deficit of Rs. 13,094 million for the first quarter of 2026, which it says necessitates the proposed 11.57 per cent tariff hike. The utility has noted that any deviation from this estimate whether a surplus or a shortfall will be adjusted through the Bulk Supply Tariff Adjustment (BSTA) mechanism and taken into account in the next tariff revision.
In its submission, the CEB said the proposed revision is aimed at ensuring the financial and operational stability of the power sector and mitigating potential risks to the reliability of electricity supply. The board-approved tariff structure for the first quarter of 2026 has been submitted to the PUCSL for approval and subsequent implementation, as outlined in Annex II of the proposal.
The CEB has also highlighted the financial impact of Cyclone Ditwah, which it said caused extensive damage to electricity infrastructure, with total losses estimated at around Rs. 20 billion. Of this amount, Rs. 7,016.52 million has been attributed to the first quarter of 2026, which the utility said has a direct bearing on electricity tariffs.
The CEB warned that if external funding is not secured to cover the cyclone-related expenditure, the costs incurred would need to be recovered through electricity tariffs in the second-quarter revision of 2026.
Meanwhile, the PUCSL has said that a decision on whether to approve the proposed tariff increase will be made only after following due regulatory procedures and holding discussions on the matter.
By Sujeewa Thathsara ✍️
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