Ottawa - August 21, 2006— In recent days, the
Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) has executed
two search warrants and arrested one person under authority of a provisional
warrant in Canada. The arrest is part of a joint operation involving the
RCMP and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Canadian resident, Suresh Sriskandarajah, age 26, arrested under the
provisional warrant is awaiting extradition to the U.S.
Generally speaking, the RCMP does not reveal details regarding operational
police matters in order to protect the privacy rights of individuals;
to protect our investigations; and most importantly, to protect all Canadians.
Nevertheless, the following information can be confirmed: the investigation
is a joint operation of the FBI and RCMP, specifically, the RCMP national
security program and the Integrated National Security Enforcement Team
(INSET) in Toronto, Ontario, and other US law enforcement partners. Several
persons associated with the LTTE have been charged in the US for terrorist
procurement activities. According to U.S. authorities, those persons are:
Sathajhan Sarachandran, age 26
Sahilal Sabaratnam, age 27
Thiruthanikan Thanigasalam, age 37
Nadarasa Yograrasa, age 52
Murugesu Vinayagamoorthy, age 57
Nachimuthu Socrates, age 54
Vijayshanthar Patpanathan, age 44
Thirukumaran Sivasubramaniam, age 27
Of these eight, three are Canadian residents.
The RCMP is continuing to pursue the Canadian component of this investigation
with the potential to lay criminal charges in the future. There is no
known direct threat against Canada.
These arrests demonstrate how integrated policing and international cooperation
enhance the ability of the law enforcement community to protect the safety
and security of the public. This has been and continues to be a complex
and intensive investigation involving many partners.
As this investigation is ongoing, it is inappropriate to provide additional
details at this time.
-30-
For media enquiries, please contact:
Sgt. Michele Paradis
NCO I/C Corporate Communications and Media Relations RCMP 'O' Division
Office: 416-952-4619
Mobile: 416-992-4409
Pager: 416-715-2375
For more information, please see: http://newyork.fbi.gov/press.htm
