Coimbatore: The Coimbatore police confirmed Sri Lankan gangster Angoda Lokka's death on Sunday. One man and two women, of whom one is a Sri Lankan national, were arrested in connection to the kingpin's death.
Coimbatore: The Coimbatore police confirmed Sri Lankan gangster Angoda Lokka's death on Sunday. One man and two women, of whom one is a Sri Lankan national, were arrested in connection to the kingpin's death.
Police said that Maddumage Lasantha Chandana Perera alias Angoda Lokka was hiding in Coimbatore for over 2 years and the three arrested people were allegedly involved in forging identity documentation for the gangster under the name Pradeep Singh. The trio allegedly cremated him in Madurai on July 3.
Those arrested in connection with Lokka's death are Amani Thanji, Sivakami Sundari and Dyaneswaran. Amani Thanji, a Sri Lankan national, was living with Lokka. The three arrested people were booked under Sections 120B, 177,182, 202, 212, 417, 419, 466, 468 and 471 of the IPC. Lokka was taken to the Coimbatore Medical College on July 3 in an unconscious state under the name Pradeep Singh.
They even submitted an Aadhaar card as an identity proof at the hospital. All the three people who accompanied him claimed that they were Lokka's relatives and alleged that he suffered a cardiac arrest. The Peelamedu police had then filed a case under Section 174 of the CrPC (procedure followed in cases of suicide and unnatural/suspicious death).
On receiving Lokka's body after an autopsy, the trio cremated the body in Madurai. As the Sri Lankan police received the information about the gangster's death, they got in touch with the Tamil Nadu police and the case was re-opened. Police then found that the documents under the name Pradeep Singh were fake. Preliminary investigation suggested that Lokka had moved to Coimbatore and was living in hiding in the city for over 2 years.
The two women took the remains and cremated it in Madurai. In the meantime, news on the Sri lankan media stated that Ankkoda Lokka was killed by his lover Ammani Thanji. The Peelamedu police who looked into the documents submitted in the name of Pradeep Singh identified it as fake documents. Following thisPeelamedu police conducted investigations and identified that the deceased person was Madhuma Sandhana Vasantha Ferrera (a) Angoda Lokka, who is in the most wanted criminal list of the Sri Lankan police. They also identified that Ammani Thanji was from Colombo.
Dhyaneshwaran was arrested at Indra Nagar in Erode. Police retrieved Singaporean/American dollars, Qatar Dinars, cell phones, laptop, fake Aadhar card copies and many sim cards from him. The police investigated Dhyaneshwaran and presented him before a judge, who remanded him to judicial custody at the Perundurai prison until August 17.
While Sivagami Sundari and Amani Thanji were also remanded to judicial custody, Ammani Thanji who was two months pregnant suffered a miscarrige. Following this, she has been admitted at the Coimbatore GH for treatment. She is receiving treatment at the prisoners' ward. Sivagami Sundari has been imprisoned at the Coimbatore Central Prison.
The Srilankan police have sought the help of the Coimbatore Police. Even though the three accused have claimed that it was Ankkoda Lokka who died, the police are seeking a more scientific approach to ascertain this. They are awaiting the autopsy results from the GH to ascertain if the death was natural or a murder. Since two countries are involved in this case, police are treading very carefully.
The police have also come to know that Angoda Lokka was arrested by Chennai Central Crime branch in 2017 in a fake passport case.