Policeman shot dead in Puttalam

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 October 2005, 06:24 GMT]
Two motorbike-riding gunmen, stopped by the Sri Lankan police Monday night at a checkpoint in Puttalam, shot and killed a police constable and escaped leaving behind their motorbike 50 meters away from the ckeckpoint. The incident took place in front of a Mariyamman temple on Puttalam -Mannar road around 8:00 p.m. Monday.

The Police Constable H.K. Wijeyasri, 26, was shot with a 9 mm handgun, police said.

The motorbike did not have a number-plate on it, police sources added.

Five policemen were manning the checkpoint.

Puttalam is located 120 km north of Colombo.