Police Constable killed in explosion

[TamilNet, Saturday, 01 July 2000, 21:04 GMT]
Wijesinghe (32), a police constable manning the 3rd Milepost checkpoint located about 4 km. south of Muttur town was killed when the Liberation Tigers fired a Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG) at 3.45pm today, said Police sources.

The checkpoint which was built on a hill functioned as a security position to safeguard the Pachchanoor Police Station.

For the security personnel manning the checkpoint on top of the 200 ft high hill, essential provisions are usually supplied using a cable. Provisions are tied to the end of the cable at the bottom of the hill and the persons at the top will pull the cable to retrieve the provisions.

Village sources said that Tigers who have been observing the use of the cable, had tied a parcel bomb to the end of the cable and that the parcel exploded when Wijesinghe blithely tried to open it.

However, Police sources insisted that it was the RPG that was the cause of the explosion.

Wijesinghe's body has been brought to the Muttur Hospital for medical examination, sources said.