Katunayaka, Colombo 27 (Daily Mirror) - An accountant was arrested yesterday for stealing the handbag of a 55-year-old Sri Lankan office assistant who works in London after she arrived at Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) from London.

The office assistant, a dual citizen of Sri Lanka and the United Kingdom, is a resident of the Pannipitiya area. She had arrived on a SriLankan Airlines flight.

Her handbag contained £ 2,700 (approximately Rs. 1,423,500), two new iPhones, and two new Samsung phones.

Shortly after the flight landed, the handbag went missing, prompting the woman to lodge a complaint with the SriLankan Airlines staff.

Although a search was conducted on the aircraft, the handbag could not be located. The pilot was informed and the SriLankan Airlines investigation officers at the BIA too were alerted.

The aircraft was then held at the BIA and investigators from SriLankan Airlines, along with BIA Police officers, conducted a search of the passengers and their luggage.

The handbag was eventually found with a 60-year-old accountant, a dual citizen of Sri Lanka and Canada, residing in Canada and is originally from Jaffna.

By the time the handbag was recovered, the suspect had used part of the stolen cash to purchase six bottles of whiskey and three bottles of perfume on the plane. The remaining cash, along with the mobile phones, was also found in the handbag.

The suspect was handed over to the BIA Police by SriLankan Airlines investigators. Both the suspect and the stolen items were taken into police custody.

Following an investigation conducted by the BIA Police, the stolen money and items are to be produced before the Negombo Magistrate’s Court today.