Giving a new twist to the controversy surrounding Lasantha Wickrematunga's murder, top Police sources claimed that the "killers" had apparently kidnapped Wickrematunga's driver, a few months after the assassination.

"The driver, after the incident, had told some of his friends, personally, that a certain influential official in the defence establishment was responsible for Wickrematunga's murder. This news had reached the group who committed the murder. suddenly, a group had kidnapped the driver and questioned him as to why he attributed the killing to the defence official. The driver had assured the kidnappers that he had no evidence to say so, and his remarks were merely based on rumours. Then, the kidnappers had released him. But, the driver lied low for nearly five years," a senior Police officer involved in the investigations said, on Wednesday. 

"There is evidence to suggest that the same group who kidnapped Wickrematunga's driver carried out the murder," he added. The Criminal Investigations Department (CID), after they revived investigations into Wickrematunga's murder, had managed to approach the driver to support the ongoing inquiries. 

Wickremeatunga, however, drove his vehicle alone when he was killed in Ratmalana, in January, 2009. 

The senior journalist's driver, on Wednesday, had identified an army intelligence warrant officer as his abductor. He was arrested by the CID, last week, in connection with Wickrematunga's murder.