Soldier robs jewels, two troopers die

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 October 2001, 17:06 GMT]
A soldier was killed when the Liberation Tigers attacked the Sri Lanka army’s Forward Defence Lines in Omanthai, north of Vavuniya town Tuesday morning. Another soldier who was seriously wounded in an ambush by the Tigers in the Parayanaalankulam area west of Vavuniya Monday night succumbed to his injuries this afternoon, military sources in the northern border town said.

The SLA trooper who was wounded in the Parayanaalankulam attack was rushed to the Anuradhapura military hospital for emergency treatment.

Meanwhile, a SLA soldier who robbed a jewellery store in Vavuniya town Monday by threatening the owners with a grenade was arrested later in the day. Police are questioning the trooper, sources said.

Sources said that the soldier appears to have been planning to desert the SLA and that he may have robbed the jewels to start life anew in his hometown.