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Police arrest 39 Tamil youths from Akuressa guest house
Sunday, 2 July 2006 - 12:22 PM SL Time
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Police took into custody 39 youths from a guest house in Akuressa who claimed that they were brought there by an intermediary to board a vessel in Devundara to sail to Italy.
ASP (Weligama) Vijitha Coomasaru said all of suspects were Tamils between the age group 25-30 and 32 of them were from the areas in Kayts, Velvettiturai, Chunnakam, Kopay and Point Pedro in Jaffna while five others were from Chilaw and two from Colombo.
They have been brought to Akuressa from Colombo in an air-conditioned bus by a man who had introduced himself as `Lingam` on June 29 and handed over to a person who claimed his name was Dishan from Devundara, ASP Coomasaru said.
Dishan had checked them into Nilwala guest house in Akuressa town. The youths have told police that each of them paid Rs 200,000 to `Lingam` to send them to Italy, he said.
The management of the guest house had been told that the boys were members of a volleyball team and had come to the south to play some matches. The management had been advised by Dishan not allow the youths to leave the guest house under any circumstances, the ASP said.
Police some clothes and biscuits in the possession of the suspects..
Though they claimed to be planning to go to Italy, only three of them had passports and the others could only produce their identity cards, ASP Coomasaru said.
Police have taken into custody the manager of the guest house, a cook and Dishan and is on the lookout for the person known as `Lingam` who had given the slip.
Police are trying to establish whether there is an LTTE link in bringing these men to the south.
A few months ago, Gandara police arrested 12 youth suspected of LTTE links. Another group of Tamil youth who couldn`t establish their presence were arrested by the police in Beliatta during the same period.
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