- Says attackers targeted CCTV to cripple prison security
- Prisons authorities deny prior intel warning
- Yet to ascertain how prisoners obtained two firearms
- Preliminary observations find informants were the first target
- Health Minister denies dengue deaths in prison
Justice Minister Harshana Nanayakkara yesterday (7) alleged that the deadly violence at Negombo prison was an organised attempt by criminal elements to cripple the prison's security systems and protect an illegal drug network operating inside the facility, as the Government announced sweeping reforms to address long-standing weaknesses in the prison system.
His remarks came after 27 people, including prison officers and inmates, were killed in violence at the prison on Monday (6). According to the latest figures released by him, seven prison officers and 20 inmates were killed, while 23 prison officers and 54 inmates were injured.
Making a special statement in Parliament, Nanayakkara said the Government viewed it as a tragedy. "This is something that should never have happened. Our Government will never treat this incident lightly. Our responsibility is to learn from what went wrong, identify the mistakes, and ensure that something like this never happens again."
He said a full investigation is now underway to determine what led to the violence, including whether prison overcrowding, security lapses, or other factors contributed to the incident. He added that the Cabinet of Ministers has already approved the appointment of a committee to investigate the incident, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has launched a probe following a complaint by the Prisons Department, and the Department itself is also conducting an internal inquiry.
He further said he had summoned all senior prison officials for a meeting at 7:30 a.m. today (8) to review the incident and discuss measures to prevent similar situations from arising at other prisons.
Providing a timeline of events, he said that the first clash occurred around 11 a.m. on 5 July, when a fight broke out between two groups of inmates. He stressed that the initial incident was not a confrontation between prisoners and prison officers. "Thirty-five inmates were injured and two prisoners died. We were able to intervene and bring that situation under control. The attack was not directed at prison officers, and by the evening, the matter had been settled."
However, the following morning (Monday), as officers were preparing to escort inmates to court after serving breakfast, he said that another violent confrontation erupted. "Preliminary information suggests that the second clash involved two rival groups linked to narcotics trafficking and organised crime. Prison authorities had recently intensified efforts to prevent drugs from entering the prison and had received intelligence from certain inmates regarding narcotics. The inmates who provided information about drug-related activities became the first targets. That is one reason that we believe that this may have been a conflict connected to narcotics and organised criminal groups. These are only preliminary observations, and the investigation may produce different conclusions."
He alleged that a group of inmates then deliberately targeted the prison security infrastructure. "This was not done by everyone. It was carried out by an organised group. They smashed closed circuit television cameras and destroyed a body scanner. What does that indicate? It appears that they were attempting to disable the mechanisms used to stop drugs and other illegal items from entering the prison," he said.
Nanayakkara noted that the first prison officers to come under attack were two unarmed officers, and that other officers who rushed to rescue them were also assaulted. "Most of the officers who lost their lives died after being assaulted by inmates. They were attacked with bricks and wooden poles."
Speaking further, he said the attackers later broke through an iron gate and attempted to move beyond the secured area. "Had they managed to get outside, there could have been enormous damage. We also know they somehow came into possession of one or two firearms. We don’t yet know whether those weapons were taken from the armoury or seized from the officers. The investigations will establish what happened," he said.
He said that prison officers subsequently opened fire in self-defence under powers granted by the Prisons Ordinance. However, he stressed that post-mortem examinations are still underway and that it has not yet been established how each victim died. "At this stage, we can’t say whether every death resulted from gunfire or assaults by inmates. The post-mortem examinations will determine that," he said.
Nanayakkara added that a total of 734 inmates identified as having played key roles in the violence had already been transferred to other prisons. "Those who were involved in organising these attacks have been separated and transferred. The situation is gradually returning to normal," he said.
Rejecting criticism that the Government had delayed responding to the crisis, he said that the Government had been addressing long-standing problems inherited from previous administrations. He noted that when the Government assumed office, prisons designed to accommodate 10,000 inmates were holding 27,000-29,000 prisoners, creating severe overcrowding.
According to him, one major contributor is Amendments introduced in 2022 to the Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, together with delays in obtaining reports from the Government Analyst's (GA) Department. Nanayakkara said that there were 118 vacancies in the GA's Department when the Government took office because those positions had not been filled after 2022, causing significant delays in laboratory reports. "We have already started recruitment. Action has been taken to recruit 72 officers. Ten positions remain vacant, and those too will be filled soon." He explained that Amendments introduced in 2022 shifted the bail jurisdiction for certain drug offences.
"Previously, suspects found with a pure quantity of heroin exceeding two grams could seek bail from the High Court (HC). After the Amendment, cases involving more than 10 grams had to be referred to the Court of Appeal (CA). As a result, suspects from Districts such as Jaffna and Badulla are required to travel to Colombo. Another problem is that it is not possible to determine which court had jurisdiction to hear a bail application until the GA confirms the pure weight of the drugs. "It can take a year just to receive the GA's report and determine the appropriate court. Then, another six months before legal proceedings move forward. A person may spend one and a half years in custody before the authorities even establish whether the substance is heroin or something else," he said.
He added the Government has already drafted legislation to reverse those provisions. "Within the next one or two months, we will present these amendments. Instead of using the pure weight, jurisdiction will be determined by the gross weight. Cases involving more than 100 grams will go before the CA, and cases involving less than 100 grams will be heard by the relevant HC. That will eliminate nearly a year's delay. We identified the root of the problem," he said.
Nanayakkara also said that prison infrastructure is currently being expanded to ease overcrowding and that the Government is introducing a House Arrest Bill to reduce the number of remand prisoners by allowing eligible suspects to be monitored electronically instead of being detained in prison. He further noted that the Prisons Department had 1,347 vacancies when the Government assumed office.
"How can you manage nearly 27,000 inmates with that number of vacancies? Since taking office, we have recruited 401 officers, another 222 are currently being recruited, and approval has been obtained for a further 994 positions. It takes time, but we are addressing the shortage," he said.
Meanwhile, an adjournment debate on the deadly clashes that occurred at the prison was held in Parliament yesterday from 3.30 p.m. to 6.30 p.m., following a request made by the Opposition.
Earlier yesterday, a group of Opposition Parliamentarians submitted a letter to the Speaker of Parliament requesting an urgent adjournment debate to draw the Parliament’s attention to the clashes that erupted at the prison. The letter was signed by several Opposition MPs, including Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa, Ranjith Madduma Bandara, Kabir Hashim, Sujeewa Senasinghe, Kins Nelson, Rohini Wijerathna, and Hector Appuhamy.
Multiple investigations have been launched into the recent unrest at the prison, the Cabinet Spokesperson and Health Minister Dr Nalinda Jayatissa has confirmed. Speaking at the weekly Cabinet media briefing yesterday, Dr Jayatissa said that the Cabinet approved the appointment of an independent three-member committee comprising a retired Supreme Court Judge, a retired official from the Attorney General's Department and a senior attorney-at-law (both President’s Counsels) to investigate the incident. He said that separate investigations are also being carried out by the Negombo Police, the Colombo Crime Division, the CID, and the Department.
"The full circumstances surrounding the incident will be established based on the findings of these investigations," he said. Dr Jayatissa has meanwhile rejected reports claiming that around 40 inmates at the prison died after contracting dengue fever. Dr Jayatissa said that the reports were completely false and that no such deaths had occurred. He said that inmates with illnesses are provided with the necessary medical treatment, while those requiring care beyond the capacity of the prison hospital are transferred to nearby hospitals.
He added that there had been no reports of deaths caused by a shortage of doctors or healthcare staff at the prison, and that no complaints had been received regarding the treatment provided to inmates. He also said that only one inmate had been reported with a fever on the day before the unrest and that the individual had received medical attention.
Also addressing the briefing, prisons Acting Commissioner General (CG), Prasad Hemantha Kumara said that the Prisons Department had not received any prior intelligence warning about the incident. He said that the prison authorities had restored order by 5 July evening after the inmates were returned to their wards and routine activities resumed. According to him, officers who entered the prison the following Monday morning found that a group of inmates had allegedly consumed narcotic tablets and were in an altered mental state, triggering clashes among prisoners.
He said that prison officers intervened to bring the situation under control, adding that investigations into the incident are continuing. Kumara yesterday explained the circumstances that led the security forces to open fire during the unrest at the prison on Monday. He made these remarks in response to a question raised by journalists at the weekly Cabinet media briefing held yesterday. According to him, the inmates had first breached the iron security door inside the prison and reached the wooden door beyond it, creating a situation that the authorities feared could not be controlled if they managed to break through the second barrier.
He further stated that after forcing open the iron door, inmates allegedly attacked nearby prison officers, and that the only step that could be taken by the security forces to ensure the safety of the prison officers and prevent the inmates from escaping was for the security forces to open fire. Explaining the situation further, Kumara said,
“The prison has two main doors, an iron door followed by a wooden door. The inmates broke through the iron door and reached the wooden door. There are valuable items located between these two doors, and it is difficult to estimate the extent of the destruction that could have occurred had they breached the wooden door as well.” He added that several prison officers had been trapped inside the premises during the unrest and were being assaulted by the inmates.
“If the prison officers had not acted in this manner while risking their lives, this is not a situation that can be assessed. A number of our prison officers were trapped among the inmates and were being attacked. They entered the premises to prevent a clash between those inmates and rescue them, but they too became trapped”. He further stated that as the inmates broke through the iron door, prison officers opened fire through the wooden door in an attempt to bring the situation under control.