[4] Prior to his current appointment, Deshabandu served as the Senior Deputy Inspector General of Police (SDIG) in charge of the Western Province.
[5] It had been reported in the Sri Lankan media that Tennakoon had allegedly been present at the two protest sites that came under attack on Black Monday.
[6] Tennakoon while serving as the SDIG in charge of Western Province, was physically assaulted on the street at Perahera Mawatha, while attempting to leave Temple Trees in civil clothing on 10 May 2022, the day after Temple Trees was attacked by protesters on Black Monday, before he was rescued by policemen and admitted to hospital.
[6][7] On 14 December 2023, a three judge bench of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka ruled that Tennakoon and two of his subordinates were guilty of torturing Weheragedara Ranjith Sumangala of Kindelpitiya for an alleged theft and thereby violating his fundamental rights when the men were in uniform attached to the Nugegoda Police Division in 2010.
The three bench panel that consisted of Justices S. Thurairaja, Kumudini Wickremasinghe and Priyantha Fernando, directed the National Police Commission and other relevant authorities to take disciplinary action against Tennakoon and two of his subordinates.