Magistrate, two prominent monks facing imminent arrest

Sri Lanka:  The Criminal Investigations Department (CID)  is to arrest a Magistrate and two prominent Buddhist monks for flouting wildlife preservation laws by possessing elephants illegally. 

The two Buddhist monks - who have been identified as key suspects in the investigation - are widely known among political circles. 

Highly placed Police Headquarters’ sources told the Daily News that the CID had obtained the Attorney General Department's advice on arresting remaining suspects in the case. Several suspects are already in custody in connection with the investigation. 

Meanwhile, Uduwe Dhammaloka Thera, who was summoned by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on Wednesday to record a statement into an incident where a two-and a-half-year-old elephant calf was found inside the Thera's temple, had been admitted to a private hospital in Colombo.

Following the Thera's non-appearance, the CID, on Wednesday night, had visited the private hospital where the Thera was undergoing treatment.

Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and his family members also visited the private hospital on Wednesday evening to meet Dhammaloka Thera. 

There is an ongoing investigation in to an incident where an elephant calf was found inside Ven. Uduwe Dhammaloka Thera's Alan Mathiniyaramaya Temple in Polhengoda. In a court case related to the matter, the CID told Court earlier that the baby elephant was not registered under Uduwe Dhammaloka Thera's name or the Temple's name.

(Source: Daily News)