by Madura Ranwala

Acting on a complaint, Police yesterday opened an armoury belonging to the state-owned security firm, Rakna Lanka Limited at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall.

The complaint had been made by JHU Kotte Urban Council member Liyanage Dayaratne to the Cinnamon Gardens Police recently. The facility was sealed thereafter.

Police Spokesman SSP Ajith Rohana told The Island that a police team led by Assistant Superintendent of Police, Colombo South, Roshan Dias, had opened the armoury situated at block two of the BMICH after obtaining a search warrant from the Colombo Chief Magistrate on January 19.

It was scheduled to be opened at 10.00 a.m. but it was delayed for about one and a half hours due to the late arrival of Assistant Secretary of the Ministry of Defence, Saman Dissanayake.

According to records of the Defence Ministry, they had issued 3,473 firearms to the state-owned security firm but there were only 151 of them at the time the inspection was conducted, he said.

Police investigations were being carried out to find out what had happened to the other weapons, the procedure they had followed in issuing firearms and how much ammunition had been issued, the SSP said.

The officers of the security firm had said that the weapons numbering 3,322 had been issued to its men who were on duty at the time, the SSP said.

The weapons permitted to be used by the company and given by the Ministry of Defence include 2300 T-56, 670 84-S, 385 LMG, 10 MPMG, 11 SLR, eight pistols, 79 12-bore repeaters and ten shot guns.

The firearms found in the armoury were forty four T-56, thirty five 84-S, 32 LMG, one MPMG, twenty nine 12-bore repeaters and ten shot guns.

Courtesy:The Island