By Shamindra Ferdinando
PA MP Athula N. Jayasinghe Friday night said that one of his police bodyguards has been arrested by the Terrorism Investigation Department [TID] for the officer’s alleged involvement in the recent raid on the Kadawatha branch of the Commercial Bank.

The Gampaha District MP said that the TID was also looking for a soldier attached to his security staff to question him in connection with the Rs 2 million bank robbery. He said that he will not interfere with the ongoing police investigation or support the suspects in anyway.

The TID said that the policeman attached to the Ministerial Security Division [MSD] was among three persons arrested in connection with the robbery a few days ago. Initial investigations have revealed that the policeman had given his T-56 assault rifle to the six-member gang that carried out the robbery. A senior TID official added that the soldier was believed to have supplied the gang with a revolver.

Asked to comment on the TID’s allegation, the MP said that he was aware of accusations against the policeman and the soldier. Jayasinghe said that he had informed both men that they should not expect any help from him. He said that the serviceman who had disappeared after the arrest of the MSD officer contacted him over the phone a few days ago. He was asked to surrender to the TID immediately, Jayasinghe added that he was not going to get into trouble by protecting anyone.

The TID said that two SLAF deserters including the leader of the gang were among those arrested in connection with the robbery. The leader was described as a person who had been involved in a series of robberies in Colombo and various other parts of the country in the past two decades. "He is in his 40s," the TID spokesman said adding that they were looking for three more persons including another deserter and the soldier attached to the MPs security unit.

The MP said that he had not spoken to the IGP, head of the TID, head of the MSD or any other senior police official in connection with the ongoing investigation.

He said that Minister Maithripala Sirisena about two weeks ago told him of talk that members of Jayasinghe’s security unit were involved in armed robberies. "I immediately informed DIG Daya Jayasundara of this," he said and that he requested the DIG to take whatever action necessary to investigate.

The TID had questioned the entire security staff of the MP during their investigation. Jayasinghe’s bodyguard was the second MSD officer arrested for a criminal offence this month. Less than a week ago, a bodyguard of deputy minister Ediriweea Premaratne was arrested by police for his alleged involvement in a multi million rupee gold smuggling racket involving the politician’s son.

In the past two years there had been a series of allegations against members of the MSD, according to political and police headquarters sources. Some had been arrested in connection with politically motivated killings, the sources said. There had been serious allegations against the Presidential Security Division [PSD], the sources said adding that bodyguards of various politicians including ministers had been allegedly involved in various violent acts but hardly any had been brought before a court.