Karandeniya Suddha suspected in Thalangama double murder

Police suspect that the alleged organised criminal known as 'Karandeniya Suddha' directed the shooting of a lawyer and his wife at a supermarket parking lot near the Army Headquarters in Akuregoda, Battaramulla.

Investigations reveal the motive may stem from a suspicion that the lawyer provided case-related information to another organised criminal known as 'Loku Patty'.

While the victim previously represented Karandeniya Suddha in legal matters, a dispute reportedly arose between the two. On the day of the incident, the lawyer appeared for Loku Patty's cases at the Kaduwela Court.

The couple was inside their luxury motor car when two individuals arriving in another vehicle opened fire. Reports indicate the assailants used a T-56 assault rifle and a 9mm pistol.

CCTV footage captured the suspects fleeing the scene, and it is reported that four individuals, including two shooters, were inside the getaway car.

The victims are identified as 45-year-old lawyer Buddhika Mallawaarachchi and his 42-year-old wife. Mallawaarachchi had a history of representing defendants in numerous organised crime cases.

Under the direction of the Inspector General of Police (IGP), ten police teams—including the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), the Central Anti-Crime Bureau, and the Special Task Force (STF)—are deployed to arrest the suspects.

This incident brings the total number of shootings this year to seven, resulting in seven deaths.