17 of 23 Negombo Prison deaths caused by gunshots

Friday, 24 July 2026 00:02 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Negombo Magistrate’s Court has been informed that 17 of the 28 deaths linked to the incident inside Negombo Prison were caused by gunshot injuries, while the remaining 11 resulted from assaults with blunt weapons.

Negombo Chief Magistrate Shilani Perera disclosed the findings in open court after considering the results of 28 post-mortem examinations submitted by the Judicial Medical Officer.

After the findings were presented, the Magistrate said the court would not differentiate between prison officers and inmates and that justice would be administered equally to all parties.

The Magistrate further observed that the evidence before the court indicated that criminal offences may have been committed and directed the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to conduct a comprehensive investigation and report its findings.

Meanwhile, the CID’s Commercial Crimes Division, which is investigating the deaths of 10 Rapid Strike Force personnel and 21 inmates inside Negombo Prison, submitted a further progress report to the court.

Appearing before court, Sub-Inspector Madhuranga of the CID’s Commercial Crimes Division said statements had been recorded from 969 individuals as part of the investigation.

These include 200 prison officers, 563 inmates, 130 Police Special Task Force personnel, 11 police officers and 65 civilians.

The investigating officer also informed the court that aliases used by 40 suspects had been identified during the course of the investigation.