Man arrested for ‘attemptin​g’ to harm the president

A man, arrested on suspicion of attempting to harm president Mahinda Rajapaksa, has been remanded until January 25.
The suspect appeared before Anuradhapura additional magistrate Chandima Edirimanne today (Jan. 20).

He was arrested following a call to 119 police emergency that he was going to harm the president, who was on a visit to Mihintale yesterday.

The court ordered Mihintale police to submit a detailed report with regard to the caller’s number.

The remanded man, a resident of Uppuveli in Trincomalee, is a supporter of deputy minister Vinayagamurthi Muralitharan alias Karuna Ammn, according to the anonymous caller.

When police arrested him, he had no documents to prove his identity.

The lawyer appearing on behalf of him said the suspect was employed at a hotel at Mihintale for around six months, and that someone had given a malicious call against him.

The court remanded the suspect in view of national security