• All prison supers ordered to intensify searches for inmate-held weapons 
•  Directive follows discovery of over 1,000 clubs, poles, sharp weapons at Negombo 
• Kitchen weapons and coconuts allegedly used in clashes that left 29 dead 

Prison authorities have ordered all prison superintendents to prioritise searches for weapons in the possession of inmates, following the discovery of a large cache of weapons at the Negombo Prison, Prisons Commissioner and Departmental Media Spokesperson A C Gajanayake said.

Speaking to The Daily Morning yesterday (13), he said that prison search operations are routinely carried out as part of normal prison security measures. "However, in the wake of the recent violence at the Negombo Prison, the Acting Commissioner General (CG) of Prisons instructed all superintendents to give priority to such inspections and intensify searches across their prisons."

The directive follows the recovery of a large stockpile of weapons allegedly used by inmates during the deadly clashes at the Negombo Prison. Police stated that investigations conducted by the Criminal Investigation Department led to the discovery of more than 1,000 clubs and poles, along with a number of sharp weapons and iron rods, during a search operation inside the Prison premises. 

Preliminary investigations have revealed that inmates had entered the Prison kitchen during the unrest and obtained sharp weapons from the facility. They had also allegedly taken coconuts from the kitchen and used them to attack Prison officers. The violence at the Negombo Prison claimed the lives of eight Prison officers and 21 inmates.