TRO's main storage facility robbed in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Friday, 16 June 2006, 19:43 GMT]
The Tamils Rehabilitation Organization's (TRO), Batticaloa main storage facility located at Old road, close to the Batticaloa railway station, inside the heavy security military controlled zone of Batticaloa Town, was robbed Thursday night at around 11.15 p.m., said Kesavan, the Batticaloa district head of TRO.

"Refugee relief-commodities, 5 computers, medical supplies, vehicle parts,office equipments, temporary shelter-tents and building materials amounting to nearly 1.5 million rupees, was robbed from the facility. These details have been commmunicated to the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM)," said Kesavan.

The TRO employed a night watch-man at the facility, but he was withdrawn after grenades were thrown at the building during two earlier occassions.

Friday early morning the thief was arrested with some of the stolen goods by the LTTE cadres in Pankudaveli in LTTE controlled Batticaloa. The robber confessed to stealing the goods and divulged that the Sri Lankan military in Batticaloa helped him to rob the TRO stores, said Daya Mohan, the Batticaloa district political head of LTTE.

Batticaloa TRO headquarters, which previously functioned in Batticaloa town, was re-located to LTTE controlled Kokkadicholai in Arasady-theevu, following the earlier abduction of Batticaloa TRO headquarter employees together with their vehicle.