IGP Priyantha Weerasooriya yesterday vowed that no officer who colluded with the underworld would go unpunished, as police launched a wide-ranging probe into a tip-off that helped underworld leader Kehelbaddara Padme and his gang.
It has been revealed that some senior police officers leaked details of an operation that was carried out by ASP Rohan Olugala and a team of officers with the help of their Indonesian counterparts, in Jakarta, to arrest Kehelbaddara Padme and his gang.
According to information elicited from Dharun, an underworld figure based in Dubai and close associate of Padme, some senior police officers themselves had tipped off Padme that ASPs Olugala and Mahinda Jayasundara had travelled to Indonesia to arrest him.
Dharun, described as a key member of Padme’s network, alleged that the advance warning enabled Padme and his associates to leave their luxury apartment and flee and hide elsewhere. Padme and his gang members were however arrested.
It has also come to light that a police officer alerted Padme to an Interpol Red Notice issued against him, and even sent a copy of the notice to the criminal via WhatsApp.
by Hemantha Randunu 
