Police foiled an alleged abduction attempt involving a young woman attending a graduation ceremony at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) in Colombo today, with officers opening fire at the vehicle after the driver allegedly refused repeated orders to stop.According to preliminary investigations, the suspect is believed to be the woman’s boyfriend.

The Narahenpita Police received an alert at around 1:30 p.m. that a young woman had been forcibly taken away from the BMICH premises in a car. Police officers subsequently attempted to intercept the vehicle as it travelled from Narahenpita towards Nawala.

Despite being signaled to stop, the driver allegedly continued driving. When he again failed to comply with police orders along the Narahenpita-Nawala Road, officers opened fire at the vehicle.The driver subsequently abandoned the car and fled on foot. Police inspecting the vehicle found the young woman inside and rescued her. Investigations have identified the fleeing driver as the woman’s boyfriend. Both the suspect and the victim are residents of the Weligama and Midigama areas.The woman had travelled to the BMICH with her family to attend the graduation ceremony of the University of Colombo’s Sripalee Campus. Police said she had attended the ceremony without informing her boyfriend.

The woman’s father, who had initially driven the suspect’s vehicle to the venue, alerted police shortly after the alleged abduction took place.The vehicle has been taken into police custody and is currently at the Cinnamon Gardens Police Station. The woman was also produced before the Colombo Judicial Medical Officer (JMO) this afternoon for examination.

An operation is currently underway to locate and arrest the suspect, who remains at large.