Imprisonment in The United Kingdom
Karuna was arrested in London on November 2, 2007 following a joint operation between the Metropolitan Police and the Border and Immigration Agency. It is thought that he was found in possession of a forged passport and firearms. According to the Sunday Times, a weekly English newspaper published in Sri Lanka, the British authorities have claimed that they have enough evidence to show that the Sri Lankan government was complicit in helping Karuna receive a diplomatic passport.
Karuna said in court that the government, through Permanent Secretary for Defense Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, had given him the passport. On January 25, 2008 he was sentenced to nine months in prison. He was transferred to an immigration detention centre in May 2008.
A number of human rights groups, led by Amnesty International, urged the Metropolitan Police to investigate Karuna for war crimes including torture, hostage-taking and recruitment of child soldiers. The Met Police did not respond and Karuna was deported back to Sri Lanka on 3 July 2008.
Read more about this topic: Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan
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