The US Embassy in Colombo has declined to comment further on a special police investigation into a major narcotics seizure at the China-managed Colombo International Container Terminal (CICT), despite questions over the circumstances surrounding the operation and the subsequent internal probe.
In responses to questions from The Island, the US Embassy said it would not add to its press release issued on 2 Sept., shortly after the raid. The statement had described the operation as a joint effort involving the US Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) New Delhi Country Office and Sri Lanka’s Police Narcotics Bureau (PNB).
The development follows a declaration by Police Headquarters on 11 Sept. that the Central Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB) was investigating the recovery of 473 kg of Crystal Methamphetamine, commonly known as ‘Ice’. Police had not publicly acknowledged the US role in the operation when announcing the investigation. Separately, on the directive of IGP Priyantha Weerasooriya, the Special Investigation Unit has launched an internal probe into what police described as shortcomings and irregularities connected with the Colombo Port raid.
The Island asked the US Embassy whether American authorities had received an update from Sri Lankan police on the investigation. The Embassy responded that US and Sri Lankan law enforcement authorities maintain close and ongoing cooperation on counternarcotics matters, including the exchange of information to combat transnational drug trafficking. It said it had nothing further to share regarding communications with Sri Lankan authorities beyond what had already been made public about the operation.
The Embassy also confirmed the role of the DEA in the seizure. In its earlier statement, it said cooperation with the DEA had contributed to the PNB’s successful seizure of approximately 463 kilograms of methamphetamine at the Port of Colombo. The Embassy said the seizure demonstrated the value of close US-Sri Lankan cooperation in disrupting transnational narcotics trafficking.
According to the 2 Sept. statement cited by The Island, the DEA’s New Delhi Country Office and the PNB had conducted a joint operation targeting a Pakistan-based narcotrafficking network allegedly attempting to move crystal methamphetamine through Sri Lanka to international markets. The US said intelligence had been developed between August 14–29 by the DEA’s Foreign Counterparts Unit Pakistan Anti-Narcotics Force Special Investigations Cell concerning suspicious maritime containers travelling from Pakistan to Colombo.
The PNB subsequently seized approximately 463 kg of crystal methamphetamine, valued at $21 million, concealed in bath towels, and arrested several suspects, including Pakistani nationals. The US Embassy said the operation reflected the strength of the US-Sri Lanka partnership and highlighted long-standing training and technical assistance provided through the US Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs to Sri Lankan police and Customs.
The Island also asked whether the Sri Lankan Police had sought clarification about the DEA New Delhi Country Office’s role in the raid and whether the Embassy was aware of the internal investigation before the newspaper raised the issue. The Embassy declined to provide additional information, reiterating that its focus remained on the US-Sri Lanka law enforcement partnership and its results in disrupting transnational criminal organisations and narcotics trafficking.
The investigation has also attracted attention in Parliament. SLPP National Organiser Namal Rajapaksa questioned the rationale for investigating the officer who led the Colombo Port raid, while referring to the controversial release of 323 containers from the port in January 2025. The Special Investigation Unit has recorded a statement from Senior DIG Ranmal Kodituwakku regarding the recent raid.
Rajapaksa questioned why an officer involved in a successful narcotics operation was being questioned when those responsible for the release of the 323 containers had not, in his view, been similarly questioned. The 323-container issue has been the subject of a separate parliamentary investigation. The Island has previously reported on the controversy surrounding their release without mandatory physical inspection.
The latest dispute therefore places two separate port-related investigations in the same public debate: the current probe into a major narcotics seizure that the United States says resulted from close intelligence cooperation, and the continuing scrutiny over the release of 323 containers in January 2025. The US Embassy, however, has declined to go beyond its earlier public account of the drug operation while the Sri Lankan investigations continue.
