It is reported that a total of 139 inmates broke through the fences at the Welikanda Kandakadu Rehabilitation Center in Polonnaruwa due to a food problem. The Welikanda Police report that 102 of the escaped inmates have been arrested, with the remaining 37 still missing.
The arrested detainees are currently held at Higurakgoda, Meigaswewa, Polonnaruwa, and Pulastipura police stations, awaiting questioning. The police reveal that the fugitives, aged between twenty and forty-seven, hail from various locations, including Colombo, Negombo, Jaffna, and Kandy.
Approximately 485 inmates are undergoing rehabilitation at the Kandakadu Rehabilitation Center. Special operations, jointly conducted by the police and the army with the cooperation of police station chiefs from several areas, including Welikanda, Pulastipura, Meigaswewa, Higurakgoda, and Manampitiya, have been initiated to locate the missing detainees.
According to Police Inspector Samantha Ratnayake, the Police Station Commander of Welikanda, twelve inmates initially escaped due to tensions with security forces over a food problem, leading to additional escapes over time. The Welikanda Rehabilitation Camp has faced similar incidents in the past, with nearly two hundred inmates being arrested in November of the previous year during a tense situation between inmates and security personnel.
A special team of police officers, including Polonnaruwa Assistant Superintendent of Police Chanaka De Silva, Assistant Superintendent of Police in charge of Welikanda Sudath Asmadala, and Welikanda Police Station Commander Samantha Ratnayake, is conducting further investigations under the leadership of Polonnaruwa Senior Superintendent of Police Nishan de Silva.
