State witness Wijeya Wickrema Manamperige Sanjaya Preethi Viraj today gave evidence in the hearings of the murder trial of former MP Nadarajah Raviraj, giving details of the murder.

Accordingly, he said that he used to work in the Eastern Province before joining the PSD and during his time in the east, he came across some members of the Karuna Faction, including Palani Sami Suresh alias Sami, and Fabien Toussaint.

He said that they were in contact with him even after he moved to Colombo.

On the day of the incident, Sami asked him to come near the Borella Cemetery and three former Karuna Faction members arrived in a three-wheeler. The three Sinhalese intelligence personnel including Gamini Senevirathne who are the accused in the case, also came in a three wheeler. He had been on a motorbike.

The intelligence officer Gamini Seneviratne had got on to the bike with a black coloured bag and the group had dispersed, according to the witness. Senevirathna instructed him to drive to a road in Wellawatte, where he dismounted with the bag, the witness said.

According to the witness, the intelligence official told him to keep the bike engine switched on. When a red jeep arrived, he shot at it and then climbed on the bike, the witness added.

He was instructed to drive the bike to Navam Mawatha where a navy intelligence building is located, the witness said.

The witness added that he asked as to who was shot, but was ordered to keep his mouth shut. He got to know of the victim from the radio, he also said.

He also said that the bike he drove was later cut into pieces and dropped off in the sea.