Grenade in hospital: ‘Suspect sought to tip-off police and collect reward’

By Norman Palihawadane

A suspect taken into custody for leaving a hand grenade in a toilet of a private hospital in Narahenpita has divulged under questioning that he found it in a ministerial residence at Wijerama Mawatha in Colombo 07. The house was not occupied at the time.

The 26-year-old suspect, a resident of Uppaweli, in Trincomalee, has told police that he had been repairing the house some three months back and while working there he had chanced upon the hand grenade and some ammunition in a drawer of a table there.

The suspect has told the police that he kept the grenade and gave the ammunition to a co-worker. The person who took the ammunition was a resident of Welikanda and also lived at Mahawa in Kurunegala.

The suspect was taken into custody by police on Wednesday evening. The Colombo Crimes Division has obtained a detention order to detain the suspect for further interrogations, police said.

CCD sources said that they arrested the second suspect possessing 18 rounds of live ammunition. The suspect has reportedly been arrested at Mahawa in Kurunegala.

Police said that the suspect had taken the grenade to the hospital with the intention of tipping off authorities in order to receive a reward.