By On Thursday (14 March), the Colombo High Court acquitted Mohammed Shiran Basik, a major drug trafficker, from a drug case against him. Judge Manjula Thilakaratne ordered Basik’s acquittal, pointing out significant contradictions in the testimonies provided by officers of the Police Narcotics Bureau (PNB).
The complaint against Basik stated that he was apprehended on 11 January 2011, near the Edmonton housing scheme in Kirulapana with 4.53 grams of heroin. Initially, it was claimed that Basik was arrested alone, but later police officials asserted that he was with his child at the time of the arrest.
Furthermore, despite a police officer’s claim that the raid was prompted by a tip-off from a certain phone number, evidence presented by the defense showed that the phone number had been disconnected approximately one and a half years prior.
Considering these inconsistencies, the judge found it inappropriate to convict Basik. The trial proceeded in his absence as he had fled to Dubai.
In a separate development, authorities recently began the demolition of a hotel near the beachfront in the Dehiwala area, reportedly owned by Basik.
