This Article is From May 05, 2019

Sri Lankan Man Arrested In Kerala Without Valid Travel Papers: Cops

The arrest of the Lankan man assumes significance in the wake of reports about the alleged visit of the perpetrators of the recent blast that had rocked Sri Lanka on the Easter day.

Sri Lankan Man Arrested In Kerala Without Valid Travel Papers: Cops

The man did not give any clear answer as to how he had reached Kerala. (FILE PHOTO)

Thiruvananthapuram:

A 30-year-old Sri Lankan national was arrested in Kerala's Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday for not possessing valid travel documents, police said.

The man, who identified himself as Maluge Juth Selfon Dias, was arrested from the Thampanoor bus terminal in the city last night, they said.

"We have brought in translators from Sri Lankan Airlines to initiate conversation with the man, but he has not disclosed anything yet. As of now, he has been taken to Nagercoil in Tamil Nadu as part of investigation and will be produced before the magistrate today itself," investigating officer told news agency PTI.

Maluge Dias told the investigators that his bag, carrying the passport, visa and other documents, had been stolen during the journey.

However, he did not give any clear answer as to how he had reached Kerala.

"..The Intelligence Bureau (IB) and other officials from national agencies have interrogated him," a police official said, adding the man claimed that he had reached Kerala on February 20. 

The arrest of the Lankan man assumes significance in the wake of reports about the alleged visit of the perpetrators of the recent blast that had rocked Sri Lanka on the Easter day.

Sri Lanka Army's chief had revealed in a recent interview that some of the suicide bombers who carried out the country's worst terror attack on Easter Sunday visited Kashmir and Kerala for "some sort of training" or to "make some more links" with other foreign outfits.

Nine suicide bombers, including a woman, carried out a series of devastating blasts that tore through three churches and three luxury hotels on April 21, killing over 250 people and injuring more than 500 others. 

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