Fajji shot dead
Mohamed Faizal alias ‘Faji’ who was wanted by police for his alleged involvement in many crimes in Maligawatta and two others were killed in a crossfire between police and gangsters last morning, police said. Fajji had forced many women in the area to have sex with him. "No one could have rejected him. He had any woman he desired," he said asserting that he could not have survived without the patronage of influential politicians representing both major parties.
‘Fajji’, one of the most politically influential gangsters in Colombo, was killed in a shoot-out on the roof of a three-storeyed building in the Maligawatte police area by an STF SWAT (Special Weapons and Tactics) team yesterday.
Acting on information obtained by the STF Intelligence, the elite police commandos had cornered the underworld leader and two of his associates and gunned them down.
With the war against the LTTE coming to an end, the STF had increased its presence in the city and its suburbs.
Addressing a press conference at Police Headquarters yesterday, Police Spokesman Senior DIG Nimal Mediwaka said that the raiding party had recovered two T 56 assault rifles, about 60 rounds of (T 56) ammunition, one CZ pistol, five hand grenades and two mobile phones. Dismissing allegations that the police had executed persons linked with the underworld, thereby operating outside the boundries of the law, Mediwaka emphasised that the police were only acting in self-defence.
IGP Jayantha Wickremaratne said that President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa had directed the police to wipe out the underworld. The police chief said that Fajji and some of his associates had returned to the area believing the police had suspended their operations against the underworld due to recent police excesses including, the killing of two youth at Angulana and the involvement of SSP Vas Gunawardena’s wife and the son in an abduction and assault case.
The police chief said that Fajji’s gang had been involved in killings, extortion and the heroin trade as well as many other nefarious activities.
An STF spokesman told The Island that Fajji had operated from several houses in the area and at the last elections for the Western Provincial Council was regularly seen with a ruling party candidate. In fact, the candidate had set up a party office at one of the luxury houses owned by the gangster in the Maligawatte police area. Responding to our queries, he said that commandos had also detected a hideout located at another place in the same police area. He said that the entrance to the air conditioned room which could comfortably accommodate about five persons was through a pantry cupboard.
Another official said that Fajji had forced many women in the area to have sex with him. "No one could have rejected him. He had any woman he desired," he said asserting that he could not have survived without the patronage of influential politicians representing both major parties.