Karandeniya PHI murder suspect arrested in Mount Lavinia
Posted by ONLANKA Newsroom on July 4, 2024 - 1:53 pm
Sri Lanka Police have arrested the gunman responsible for killing Public Health Inspector Roshan Kumara Vithanage in Elpitiya back in February.
The suspect was apprehended with two firearms in the Mount Lavinia area, according to police.
Vithanage, aged 51 and serving as PHI for Karandeniya, was fatally shot at his home on Pathiraja Mawatha by assailants arriving on a motorcycle. CCTV footage captured two suspects fleeing the scene on a motorcycle.
Vithanage, also Treasurer of the Sri Lanka Public Health Inspectors’ Union (PHIU), was targeted in the attack.
Previously, another suspect connected to the murder was arrested at Katunayake Airport while trying to flee to Dubai with a fake passport.
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It is so sad to see a Public Health Inspector gunned down as happened to Mr Vithanage.I do not know the circumstances of the incident, but perhaps it is possible to be related to his duties. The PHI’s do a very important job on the preventive medical side and they do encounter dangerous situations in the line of their duties. The assistance of the Police and the Military should be considered vital and should be made available on a priority basis whenever necessary. I served as a MOH in Sri Lanka and I worked with excellent duty conscious PHI’s. My sincere condolences to Wife and Family of Mr Vithanage.