A judicial officer working at the Nuwara Eliya Magistrate’s Court has been arrested for allegedly stealing a valuable mobile phone from the court’s case file room and gifting it to her boyfriend. The theft was uncovered after a complaint was filed by the Registrar of the Nuwara Eliya Magistrate’s Court on the 22nd, reporting the disappearance of a valuable phone from the case room.
Following the complaint, the Nuwara Eliya Police initiated an investigation under the supervision of Chief Inspector Premalal Hettiarachchi. Police officers, including Sub-Inspector Priyadarshana and Sergeant Rasika, examined the phone’s data and discovered that it had been used by an individual who was later identified as the boyfriend of the court employee. During questioning, the man admitted that his girlfriend, who worked in the court’s case file room, had given him the phone as a gift.
The police arrested the judicial officer, and she was produced before the Nuwara Eliya Magistrate’s Court. Magistrate Prabuddhika Lankangani ordered that the suspect be remanded in custody until the 9th of this month. The investigation is ongoing, and the police have said that further legal action will be taken based on the evidence collected.
The incident has raised concerns regarding the security and integrity of valuable items within court premises. Authorities are expected to review the security measures in place to prevent similar incidents in the future.