Three suspects have been arrested in connection to the murder of a millionaire businessman and engineer Saman Wijesiri, three years after his disappearance.
The 63-year-old businessman who is a resident of Chilaw was reported missing in 2018 and investigations into his disappearance had been conducted by the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) based on a complaint filed in this regard.
Investigations have revealed that Saman Wijesiri had over 25 years of experience with the UN as a charted engineer, had also worked as a Technical Engineer at the World Bank Sri Lanka Branch, and at the Economic Development Ministry.
Wijesiri who had been living in Australia for years and was married to a Japanese woman there is reported to have bought several properties in the Bingiriya and Chilaw areas. The businessman had been living in Chilaw during the time of his disappearance and had reportedly hired a watchman to look after his property.
The Police said forged travel documents had been prepared to mislead the investigations after the businessman’s disappearance, to show that Wijesiri had left the country.
However, investigations had revealed that the suspects, including the watchman and a friend of Wijesiri, had murdered the victim in order to claim his property. The suspects are said to have created fake documents, including a power of attorney, to claim ownership of the victim’s property.
The three suspects arrested over the murder of Saman WIjesiri have been remanded after being produced before the Chilaw Magistrate. (NewsWire)