The Western Province Southern Crime Division and Malabe Police have initiated investigations into the death of former IGP C.D. Wickramaratne, the police said.
The Police Media Division issued a statement saying that C.D. Wickramaratne's body has been deposited at the Colombo East Teaching Hospital for a post-mortem examination.
Police said that former IGP C.D. Wickramaratne died after being hospitalized after suffering gunshot wounds at his residence in Talahena, Malabe this morning (17).
However, the police had previously stated that C.D. Wickramaratne had committed suicide by shooting himself at his residence. The Kaduwela Magistrate, who arrived at the scene this afternoon, conducted a magisterial investigation and the current Inspector General of Police Priyantha Weerasuriya also visited the scene.
It is reported that the Kaduwela Magistrate has ordered the police to conduct a formal investigation into the death of Mr. C.D. Wickramaratne and submit a report indicating its progress to the court.
Mr. C.D. Wickramaratne, who served as the 35th Inspector General of Police in the country, was 63 years old at the time of his death.
He joined the police service in 1986 and was appointed as the Acting Inspector General of Police after the suspension of the service of the then Inspector General of Police Pujith Jayasundara following the terrorist attacks on Easter Sunday in 2019. He was subsequently appointed as the Inspector General of Police on November 27, 2020. He retired from the post of Inspector General of Police on November 23, 2023.