Contract killing gone wrong Innocent farmer shot dead in mistaken identity

• The intended target was the lover of a gangster’s wife

By B.G.Chaturanga   

A case of mistaken identity has led to the death of an innocent young man in Kawantissapura, Sri Pura, in the Anuradhapura District, the police said. The victim, K.D. Chandana, a 26-year-old paddy farmer, was shot dead by hired gunmen who were mistakenly targeting him instead of their intended victim.  

The intended target was the paramour of a woman whose husband is an underworld gangster and drug trafficker currently hiding abroad. According to police, the gangster had contracted the gunmen to kill his wife’s lover. 

The assassins, riding a motorcycle, mistakenly identified Chandana, who was watching over a stock of paddy spread out on the road to dry, and shot him dead.  

The victim had no involvement in any illegal activities and was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. The intended target was allegedly a close associate of the gangster, involved in drug trafficking for a long time.  
Sri Pura Police are actively conducting further investigations to apprehend the suspects involved in this fatal mistake.