Three top LTTE members, who were arrested by the Malaysian authorities few weeks ago, were handed over to the Sri Lankan police and are being interrogated by the Terrorist Investigation Department in Colombo, Police said.

 

“The three LTTE suspects- Edmond Singharaja alias Seelan, Angurukankanamlage Indika Sanjeewa alias Mohamed Sanjaya Abdul and Abdul Saleem Bin Mohamed- were brought to Sri Lanka last night,” the Police media unit said in a statement.

 

On July 4, Malaysian police arrested four LTTE suspects following several raids in the Malaysian capital.

 

They are suspected of invovlement in attacks in Sri Lanka and elsewhere.

 

Malaysian Police said the suspects "were planning to reactivate the group by making Malaysia as their base of operations". Some activists, had exploited their status as refugees to pursue illegal activities.

 

Those arrested included a suspected militant linked to the attempted assassination in 1999 of former Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga.

 

A second suspect was described as an explosives expert, a third is alleged to have facilitated planned attacks on Sri Lankan consulates in India and the fourth is accused of gathering intelligence for the group. Counterfeit passports and other documents had been confiscated, Khalid said.

 

Earlier the Malaysian authorities previously detained three men in mid-May suspected of trying to use Malaysia as a base to revive the separatist movement.

 

Malaysia deported the men back to Sri Lanka, where officials say they remain under investigation.