A 74-year-old man was critically injured in a shooting targeting a residence in the Galvehera area of Ahungalla early this morning, with police suspecting the attack was carried out by an associate of alleged organised criminal 'Loku Patty'.

The victim was sleeping in his bedroom when a gunman opened fire through a window before fleeing the scene. The injured man was subsequently admitted to the Balapitiya Base Hospital.

Police suspect that the intended target of the attack was the victim's son, and believe the shooting was carried out in retaliation for the murder of Loku Patty's brother.

This incident marks the second shooting reported in the Ahungalla area within three days.

The latest attack brings the total number of shootings involving organised crime groups in Sri Lanka this year to 40, which have left 26 people dead and 16 others injured.

Police further suspect that the shooting was carried out by a suspect who managed to flee during a police raid in Kosgoda yesterday.

The raid was launched after Assistant Superintendent of Police Rohan Olugala, Director of the Walana Anti-Corruption Unit, received intelligence that alleged drug trafficker Ahungalle Loku Patty's faction was planning to assassinate five close associates of rival alleged underworld figures 'Karandeniye Sudda' and 'Kosgoda Sujee'.

Upon receiving information that shooters had gathered at a house in Kosgoda to alter motorcycle registration plates and test firearms ahead of the planned killings, officers from the Walana Anti-Corruption Unit laid an ambush by hiding in an adjacent cinnamon plantation yesterday afternoon.

Officers observed two individuals arriving in a three-wheeler followed by a third on a motorcycle.

When police raided the premises, they caught the three suspects testing weapons behind the house.

One of the suspects opened fire at the police officers, prompting them to retaliate by shooting him in the leg before taking him into custody.

A second suspect was apprehended while attempting to flee, while the third managed to escape and is believed to have carried out the subsequent Ahungalla shooting.

Police seized a hand grenade from the pocket of the injured gunman, whose mobile phone received an incoming call from Dubai during the arrest.