By Walter Jayawardhana

From a clue obtained from a suspect in Mount Lavinia the police took into custody yesterday in Mannar another man and claymore bomb laden van averting a disastrous suicide mission being put together by suspected remnants of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.

The police sources said the 20 claymore mines , each weighing five kilograms laden in the suicide vehicle demonstrate the explosive power of the mission fortunately averted in the nick of time.

The vehicle and its intended driver was taken into police custody at Uppukulam, Mannar in the Northern Province , an area recently taken from the LTTE.

Police Media spokesman Senior Superintendent of Police Ranjith Gunasekera said the terrorist mission, was unfolded detectives from Colombo Crimes branch arrested two suspects at Mount Lavinia August 10. Based on the information the police arrested the man and the van at Uppukulam yesterday. The van was of Hi Ace make. Police dismantled the 20 high powered side bombs nicely laden in the van

Suspects revealed it was to be driven by the Uppukulam suspect for a suicide mission in the capital Colombo.

Police said all three suspects are being extensively interrogated by the Colombo Crimes Division detectives for more details of the suicide mission.

The same unit has also taken into custody in an unrelated case twelve vehicle which were taken on lease and for hire and sold under fake documents. Three suspects with three T56 rifles also have been arrested at Kalutara South in this connection. Among the 12 vehicles were cars, vans and jeeps