Two suspects have been arrested following the disappearance of nearly 20,000 school textbooks valued at approximately Rs. 800,000 that were meant for distribution in the Eastern Province.
Authorities have arrested a lorry driver and a waste paper collector in connection with the theft of 19,892 school textbooks intended for students in the Eastern Province. The textbooks, worth around Rs. 800,000, were placed in the custody of a transportation contractor in the Biyagama area by the Educational Publications Department.
According to investigations by the Thalangama Police, the lorry driver took possession of the shipment in May but instead of delivering the books, sold the entire stock to a waste paper collector. The driver received Rs. 47,000 in exchange for the textbooks, which were sold by weight. The incident came to light when officials from the Educational Publications Department noticed the delivery had not been completed and filed a complaint with police.
During police interrogation, the waste paper collector revealed that he had subsequently sold the textbooks to a recycling facility in the Peliyagoda area that processes old newspapers and waste materials. Thalangama Police have indicated that investigations are ongoing and several additional suspects connected to the incident remain at large.
