Following a concerning rise in organized criminal activities in the Western and Southern provinces, a special operation targeting 20 identified organized criminal gangs in the country under the 'Yukthiya' initiative was launched yesterday.
Accordingly, 20 special police teams have been deployed to dismantle those identified underworld gangs.
Inspector General of Police Deshabandu Tennakoon, STF Commandant Senior DIG Warun Jayasundara and several other senior police officers attended the official team send-off held at the Bambalapitiya Police Field Force Headquarters.
These 20 newly established teams will be used to curb the activities of each underworld group currently operating, and for each team will comprise with 9 member team including a crime OIC, 04 intelligence officers, 02 special task force officers.
IGP Tennakoon said that 99 shootings related to organized criminals were reported since January 2023, resulting in 56 deaths and 37 injuries.
"While many of the deceased were organized criminals, they must be prosecuted through legal channels. Vigilante justice cannot be condoned," the IGP emphasized.
