Former IGP C. D. Wickramaratne dies after shooting himself in the head.

Former IGP Chandana Deepal Wickramaratne has died. The police say it is suspected to be a suicide.

The body of the former IGP was found with a fatal gunshot wound in his house in Athurugiriya. Authorities strongly suspect that the fatal head injury was self-inflicted and was inflicted using a personal firearm.

However, the Athurugiriya Police and specialized forensic teams have now commenced an extensive investigation to establish the exact circumstances surrounding the incident.

C.D. Wickramaratne joined the Sri Lanka Police Service as an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) in 1986 and has held a number of major operational commands in a career spanning over three decades.  Following the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks, he was appointed as the Acting IGP and later confirmed as the 35th IGP, a position he held until his retirement in late 2023.

Unofficial sources we have received indicate that the deceased IGP and several others, including a secretary working at the Ministry of Defence at the time, were to be arrested soon during the ongoing investigation into the Easter attacks, and that the suicide may have taken place after learning of that information.

Although the initial assessment is that the death was a suicide, the Police Media Spokespersons' Offices point out that specific details will only be established after the ongoing Magistrate's Inquest and post-mortem examinations are completed.