[1] On 1 February 1998, at 5.30 am, about 20 drunken policemen and home guards from two Sinhalese settlements launched a roundup of two neighbouring Tamil villages of Puthukkudiyiruppu and Potkerni in Thampalakamam, Trincomalee District.
They went around pulling Tamil villagers out of their houses, severely assaulting them and shooting dead their cows and dogs.
[4] Following the massacre, the Kantalai Police reportedly pressured the families to sign statements stating that the victims were members of the LTTE or were killed by them.
However, the identities of the culprits were confirmed at a magisterial inquiry by the Officer-in-Charge (OIC) of the Kantalai Police station but the accused were not arrested and reportedly continued to be on active duty.
[1] In 2005, the Kantalai Police arrested 13 policemen and home guards and the Attorney General filed charges against them.