Two men who pleaded guilty to illegally possessing firearms and explosives at the Lactowatta estate in Wanathawilluwa, Puttalam, in 2018 have been sentenced to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment.
The Colombo High Court issued the sentence today (07) in connection with the case involving Easter Sunday attack mastermind Zahran Hashim and other Islamic extremists, who had allegedly stored firearms and explosives at the location.
The case was taken up before a three member Colombo High Court bench comprising Justices Lal Ranasinghe Bandara, Rashmi Singappuli and Nayomi Wickremesekera.
The two convicts were identified as Abu Hanifa Mohamed Musif and Amir Hamza Mohamed Hamas. The Attorney General had filed indictments containing 14 charges against six accused in connection with the incident.
The other accused are Mohamed Sarifu Adam Lebbe, Mohamed Ibrahim Sadiq Abdullah, Mohamed Ibrahim Mohamed Naufar and Mohamed Rameesh Mohamed Sajid.
The Criminal Investigation Department had previously seized a stock of nitrates considered explosive materials, 12 live rounds of ammunition, a firearm, and quantities of nitric acid and urea allegedly intended for the manufacture of explosives from the Wanathawilluwa property in 2018.
