Six people were killed in two incidents of apparently gang-related violence in Sri Lanka yesterday, police said, despite a tough crackdown ordered last week.
Five were found burned to death in a van on a remote stretch of road outside Colombo, their bodies too charred to be easily identified.
“This looks like some kind of revenge attack,” a senior police official said.
“An investigation is under way to identify the victims. We suspect this has something to do with gang rivalry.”
In a separate incident, gunmen burst into a home in the island’s south and opened fire, killing a woman and wounding her husband, police said.
No arrests have yet been made over the deaths, which come days after President Maithripala Sirisena drafted in the military to help tackle a surge in gang-related
shootings.
Security forces have been asked to conduct joint operations with the police to dismantle crime networks responsible for drug smuggling and extortion rackets.
Police have also re-introduced road blocks, a common sight during the decades-long Tamil separatist war that ended in May 2009.
More than 100 police stations in Colombo and its suburbs have been asked to erect snap blocks, a common practice during the island’s separatist war that ended nearly seven years ago, police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekera said.
“The objective is to prevent serious crime and drug smuggling as well as to catch those committing serious crime,” the spokesman said.
He said there was a surge in drug smuggling and shootings that prompted the authorities to take extraordinary measures.
Gunasekera said 10 special units were also established to crack down on gang activity that had increased in recent weeks.
Sri Lankan authorities had dismantled road blocks and stopped vehicle checks after the end of the decades-long Tamil separatist war in May 2009.
Even the permanent check points at key entry points to the city had been removed several years ago.
The new government which came to power in January last year removed the last remaining check point at the entrance to the former war zone as a sign of normality.
However, the new police measure brought back memories of war-time Colombo when freedom of movement was curtailed due to frequent stops for security checks.
At least 100,000 people were killed in the 37-year separatist war which ended after a major offensive by the military.