Preliminary investigations have revealed that a restaurant in Hanwella Cross Road area was raided yesterday (18) night and the owner was shot and killed according to the contract of a strongman of an underworld gang based in Dubai.
Mohammad Farshan (46), a businessman who is a father of three children, was shot while closing his restaurant and checking the daily transaction money from the cashier counter.
The police say that a motorcycle was stopped in front of this restaurant at Hanwella Cross Road at around 10.00 last night and there were two people on it. The restaurant workers were waiting in front of the restaurant at that time. The people who came from the motorcycle stayed on the motorcycle and demanded 04 cigarettes from the restaurant worker.
The police say that the restaurant worker sneaked through the door that was ajar and took 04 cigarettes from the businessman and went to them and requested money before giving them the cigarettes. They have said no money and the police said that when the employee returned to the restaurant with the 04 cigarettes and gave them back to the businessman, the person sitting on the back of the motorcycle suddenly broke into the restaurant and fired four shots at the businessman who was waiting at the cashier’s counter.
The incident was clearly recorded on the restaurant’s security camera. A senior police officer said that the shooter could not be clearly identified due to the fact that he was wearing a helmet and face mask.
The owner of the restaurant, who was shot in the chest area, was taken to Padukka Hospital by the shop staff, but he had died by then.
A special police team investigating the matter has received information that the shooting was carried out by the disciples of two underworld criminals named Chamia and Lalit, who are operating from Dubai and are trying to capture the underworld power in Hanwella. As there is no room for underworld criminals to extort money from trade and business establishments in Hanwella and the fact that two main disciples of the two underworld strongmen were apprehended by police through the help of this businessman, the investigation teams have received information that root cause of this shooting is this.
It is said that the businessman’s house was attacked by thieves about a month and a half ago and two thieves who entered the house were beaten and held by the businessman’s family members. When the police came to the house the two thieves had ran away and later the two thieves who were arrested. After investigation those two are said to be in remand prison.
A senior police officer said that since the two underworld strongmen staying in Dubai lost their power and did not receive ransom from the businessmen, the killing was planned by them.
Police said that after shooting the businessman, a person called the brother of the murdered businessman said “look what has happened” and that the investigation is also underway through that call.
Police say that after shooting, the motorcycle shooter was riding entered the high level road and fled towards Avissawella.
While checking the security camera data, the motorcycle was found abandoned in the Dashavella area of Hanwella. A senior police officer said that its number plate was not clear and the engine number was scratched.
It has also been revealed that the call received by one of the businessman’s brothers after his murder was from Dubai.
Gayan Kumara Weerasinghe
