Lankan CID chief, hotel staff held for Chennai man's murder

An Indian national from Chennai, Thennarala Selvaraja (24), who went to Colombo earlier this month to work as a chef, was murdered over the weekend and his body thrown into the sea.

Acting on a tip-off, the Colombo police arrested Chandana Pushpalal Silva, chief inspector of investigation department (CID), and Mariyana-yagam Leslie Rajkumar, manager of the Big Banana restaurant in Wellawatte, in connection with the murder.

The accused were arrested at Mundalama after a villager alerted the police and gave them the number of the vehicle in which the suspects were travelling. The police

  said the villager called after he saw the suspects throwing a body into the sea at Kandathoduwawa in Mundalama.

The police believe the victim was strangled, though the suspects claimed the man had committed suicide and they merely attempted to dispose of the body.

Diplomatic sources at the Sri Lankan deputy high commission in Chennai told TOI, "The murder looks to be a fallout of a relationship and we are in touch with Colombo on the issue. A clearer picture will emerge only after a couple of days." It is also not known yet as to which part of Chennai Selvaraja belongs to.

Indian diplomats who confirmed the murder told TOI from Colombo that the Sri Lankan police on Monday briefed the Indian high commission about the investigation.

A Sri Lankan journalist covering the case told TOI, "This looks like a passion crime and promises to be a big story in the coming days since the chief inspector of CID was himself caught disposing of the body."

The police said Selvaraja had arrived in Sri Lanka on June 11 and joined the staff at a restaurant managed by Rajkumar.

Selvaraja, who was employed as a cook, went missing earlier this month and a complaint was made on June 26 by Rajkumar's wife Sivakumaran Shiwani.

The police, who carried out a search of Rajkumar's residence, also arrested Shiwani along with her husband and the CID chief.