A 17-year-old youth was fatally wounded in a police shooting in Sri Lanka’s northern Jaffna district early Tuesday after officers fired at a van that reportedly ignored orders to stop at a checkpoint, police said.
The incident took place near the Allapiddy junction within the Kayts police division in the early hours of February 10. According to police, officers attempted to stop a suspicious van, but the vehicle failed to comply and continued at speed toward the Mandaitivu area.
Police said details of the fleeing van were passed on to a patrol jeep carrying the Officer-in-Charge of the Kayts Police. Despite repeated attempts to intercept the vehicle, it continued to evade officers. Warning shots were initially fired into the air, but the van did not stop.
Officers then opened fire in an effort to halt the vehicle, police said. The driver was struck by gunfire and was admitted to the Jaffna Teaching Hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries. The deceased was identified as a 17-year-old resident of Vaddukoddai.
Police also noted that the rear number plate of the van had been removed. Two other individuals who were inside the vehicle at the time were taken into custody. Further investigations are being carried out by the Kayts Police in coordination with the Jaffna Divisional Criminal Investigation Unit.
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