'Lanka film actress aided drug dealers'

A Sri Lankan adult film actress is now suspected by police to have helped a notorious drug dealer in conducting his business.

Drug dealer Gampola Vidanage Samantha Kumara alias Wele Suda admitted in court recently that he had financial dealings with actress Shehara Jayaweera.

Suraj Ahamed of Dehiwala, who is believed to have been Wele Suda’s financial manager, told police in March that, on instructions from the drug dealer, he had used Shehara’s house in Mount Lavinia as a drug distribution centre.
 
According to Suraj, Wele Suda had imported a large quantity of heroin into Sri Lanka in 2009 which was distributed from the house of Shehara.

Four others, identified as Dehiwala Kawudage Amila, Pradeep of Woodland Mawatha, Kumara of Wellawatta and Dehiwala Nedimala Nalin were employed for distribution of drugs, with Suraj as their manager.
 
Since Shehara was a film actress, police was not suspicious of her or her vehicles which enabled the drug traders to conduct their business without getting caught.

Wele Suda admitted in court that Shehara was given large sums of money by him from time to time for allowing the drug dealer to use her house.

Wele Suda also told the court that he loaned two million rupees to former MP Duminda Silva.

Wele Suda’s drug peddling case came up before the Colombo High Court at the beginning of August.

Wele Suda was responding while being cross examined before Justice P. Padman Surasena.

The drug dealer told the court that when he asked Duminda Silva to repay his loan, the former MP had sent the police to his residence. He added that, fearing for his safety, he had fled Sri Lanka on a fake passport.

Actress Shehara, who appeared in court on June 12, sought release of a bank account that was frozen after revelations by Wele Suda during interrogation.

Responding to questions posed by Colombo Chief Magistrate Gihan Pilapitiya, the actress claimed that she had no dealings with Wele Suda.  However, she admitted that she met Wele Suda in Dubai during a concert tour and that he had given her money for a teledrama, which was handed over to the teledrama’s director. She also stated that she was not aware of what happened to the money thereafter.

Speaking in court, the actress said that the money in the bank account under her name is money deposited by her and her brother and that Wele Suda’s money was not deposited in the account. She said that only income from acting was deposited in the account and that due to the court order, she was unable to carry out her day-to-day bank transactions.

 

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