SRI LANKA: An innocent young man tortured by the Panadura North Police after being illegally arrested

Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that 21-year-old Don Mahesh Duminda Weerasuriya was illegally arrested and tortured by the officers of the Panadura North Police Station on 5 November 2004. It is reported that the police arbitrarily arrested the innocent victim to inquire into the whereabouts of his uncle. According to the victim, the police also threatened to fabricate bomb possession charges against him if he did not provide information about his uncle. After being tortured at the police station, the victim was falsely charged by the police and remanded at the Kalutara Prison where he was detained until November 10.

Your urgent action is needed to pressure the government of Sri Lanka to investigate this case and to take legal/disciplinary action against those responsible for the crimes against Mr. D.M.D. Weerasuriya.

Urgent Appeals Desk
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
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DETAILED INFORMATION:

Name of the victim: Mr. Don Mahesh Duminda Weerasuriya, 21 years old, a driver 
Address of the victim: 265/6, Sri Nivasarama Road, Pallimulla, Panadura
Alleged perpetrators:  1) Inspector of Police (I.P.) Prasanna, Officer in Charge (O.I.C.) of Panadura North Police Station, 2) I.P. Buddhadasa, O.I.C. of Crimes Branch of the Panadura North Police Station, 3) Sub Inspector (S.I.) Dhananjaya of the Panadura North Police Station
Date of illegal arrest and torture: 5 November 2004
Place of incident: Panadura North Police Station

Case details: (based on the victim’s account)

Mr. Don Mahesh Duminda Weerasuriya was severely tortured by the officers of the Panadura North Police Station after being illegally arrested on 5 November 2004.

At about 7pm on 5 November 2004, Mr. D.M.D. Weerasuriya, who was scheduled to have plastic surgery on his ear within a few days, went to a pharmacy at Galle road, Pallimulla, Panadura to buy some medicine. When he came out of the pharmacy, about eight police officers from the Panadura North Police Station, only two of whom were in uniform, surrounded him and checked his body for about 15 minutes. 

When the police failed to find anything on his body, an officer asked Mr. D.M.D. Weerasuriya whether a person named Janaka was his uncle. When he said yes, the police arrested him immediately. The police also arrested two bystanders along with the victim. At the time of the arrest, the police did not produce a warrant memo nor inform the victims of the reason for their arrest. They then took the three to the Panadura North Police Station in a lorry. Inside the lorry, one police officer assaulted Mr. D.M.D. Weerasuriya with his hand and kicked him while questioning him about his uncle. To this day, the victim does not know why the police are pursuing his uncle. 

At the Panadura North Police Station, Mr. D.M.D. Weerasuriya was assaulted by the police officers mentioned above.  S.I. Dhananjaya ordered him to remove his T-shirt before torturing him by hitting him with his hand and kicking him with his boots; all the while questioning him about the whereabouts of his uncle. The police also threatened the victim saying that if he did not provide information about his uncle, they would implicate him on false charges of bomb possession and would produce him before a court with evidence of such charges. After that, Mr. D.M.D. Weerasuriya was put into a cell. 

At 11am on the following day (November 6), the police forced Mr. D.M.D. Weerasuriya to put his fingerprints on a blank sheet of paper for the purpose of comparing his to those of other suspects. This police act is in violation of domestic law in Sri Lanka, which requires a court order for police to take fingerprints of any suspect. However, in reality, such a violation is a standard practice in most police stations in Sri Lanka. 

At about 5pm on the same day (November 6), Mr. Weerasuriya was produced before Mr. G.D. Perera, acting Magistrate in Panadura, who remanded him to the Kalutara Prison. After being taken to the Kalutara Prison, Mr. D.M.D. Weerasuriya was assaulted again by the prison staff. On November 10, Mr. D.M.D. Weerasuriya was released on bail. 

The AHRC is deeply concerned about the torture and fabrication of charges against the victim by the Panadura North Police. We urge the local authorities to conduct a proper inquiry into this case and bring the responsible officers to justice without delay. 

SUGGESTED ACTION:
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