A driver attached to the Gangawata Korale Divisional Secretariat has been handed over to Kandy Police for allegedly stealing a stock of bottled drinking water donated for people affected by Cyclone Ditwah.

The driver is accused of using a government cab to transport and sell the disaster-relief water bottles to a restaurant near the Red Keselwatta area at the Ampitiya junction.

A group of local youths reportedly apprehended him and turned him over to the police.

Commenting on the incident, Amila Navarathna, the Divisional Secretary of Gangawata Korale, said the driver has been immediately suspended for misusing the donated water bottles.

He further noted that the driver had only been employed for a few weeks.

Residents who apprehended the suspect said that legal action should also be taken against the restaurant owner who allegedly purchased the donated water bottles that were intended to be distributed free of charge to disaster-affected families.