Five Remanded Over Southern Sea Heroin Smuggling

COLOMBO (News 1st); Five individuals arrested in connection with a heroin smuggling operation off Sri Lanka’s southern coast have been ordered into remand custody until November 4.

The suspects were apprehended by the Sri Lanka Navy during a targeted operation and subsequently handed over to the Police Narcotics Bureau. 

They were presented before Colombo Chief Magistrate Asanga S. Bodaragama yesterday (22), where formal charges were filed under possession and trafficking of heroin.

Authorities revealed that the suspects were found in possession of 50 grams of heroin at the time of arrest. However, investigations suggest that a larger quantity of narcotics may have been submerged in the sea to evade detection.

Magistrate Bodaragama instructed officials to continue their probe into the submerged narcotics and report findings to the court.

The Police Narcotics Bureau further disclosed that the operation may have been orchestrated under the command of an alleged high-profile trafficker known as Kodi Kumara, believed to be a key figure in the region’s drug trade.