• Narcotics such as ICE, Kush and heroin recovered during the raid

By Darshana Sanjeewa Balasuriya

Seven suspects involved in various scams through social media have been arrested during a raid at the JAIC Hilton in Colombo, police said.

Police Spokesman SSP Nihal Thalduwa said that the suspects were arrested during a search operation conducted by the Walana Anti-Corruption Division on Monday night. 

It has been revealed that the suspects had been staying in the hotel and were using social media plat­forms to obtain money from the public using various fraudulent tactics.

Preliminary investigations have revealed that the main suspect was a 35-year-old resident of Kandy, while other suspects are aged between 22 and 40, and are residents of various parts of the country.
The raid was conducted during a party held at the hotel following a court order.

The spokesman said the suspects had used the money to live a luxurious life and also to consume drugs.
Officers also recovered various narcotics such as ICE, Kush and heroin during the raid.
Meanwhile, sources said that the main suspect arrested during the raid was operating the scam in the hotel for some time.

It was revealed that the suspects were staying at two apartments in the hotel and reportedly paid around Rs. 200,000 daily to the hotel for their meals and other facilities.
The officers recovered two tabs from the main suspect’s possession and it was found that around Rs.1 million had been deposited daily to a number of bank accounts maintained by the main suspect. 

Sources said a group of youth have been hired by the main suspect by providing accommodation and facilities at the hotel to withdraw the money from those accounts.

Three women in the hotel rooms at the time of the raid were also taken in for questioning.

The suspects would be charged under the Money Laundering Act and the CID to conduct further investigation into the case.

The raid was conducted by a team comprising Chief Inspector Siriwardana, IP Oshada, IP Sampath, SI Sadaruwan, SI Bandaranaike, Sergeant (428) Jayalal, Kamalsiri (28777) and a group of Women Police Constables of the Walana Anti Corruption Unit.