Confusion has arisen over why the Police Media Division issued a statement regarding a shooting incident near the W15 hotel in Weligama on 31 December 2023—reiterating old details—just a day before the Court of Appeal’s verdict on suspended IGP Deshabandu Tennakoon’s writ petition. Tennakoon had sought an interim order preventing his arrest over the incident.

The Police Media Division’s statement noted that, based on an agreement reached, the Attorney General (AG) had directed the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) not to arrest the Officer-in-Charge (OIC) of the Colombo Crimes Division (CCD) and five other accused—excluding Tennakoon, who has been absconding for nearly 20 days.

However, this decision not to arrest the six officers is not new information. They had already filed their writ petition before the Matara Magistrate’s Court ordered the arrest of Tennakoon and others. The case was last heard in the final week of January, during which the Attorney General’s Department informed the court that the petitioners, including Acting Director of the CCD Neville Silva, would not be arrested. This position was reaffirmed during the case hearing, with the AG’s Department stating that the status quo would remain until the next court date on 21 March. Notably, at the time of this extension, the Magistrate’s Court had yet to announce its inquest verdict.

Following the sudden release of the statement, many on social media questioned its timing and purpose. The statement did not even mention the date of the agreement. It has been over a week since the CID recorded statements from the petitioners, including Chief Inspector Anselm de Silva, yet the media release contained no new details regarding this.

Serious concerns have been raised about why the Police Media Division issued a press release—more than three months after the relevant agreement and over two weeks after the court order—while omitting crucial developments. Many questioned why the Police had not issued statements on the reappearance of Deshabandu Tennakoon’s wife and child, the statements recorded from his wife, or the revelations from those statements. Despite the questioning of Tennakoon’s wife and son, no official statement has been released on that matter.

Police statement issued this evening.