A former player of the national rugby team involved in several robberies of gold necklaces was arrested along with gold worth Rs.4 million, the Kaduwela Police said.

According to the information received by the Kaduwela Police OIC that a suspicious car was parked along the Vihara Mawatha in Kaduwela, the suspect was arrested with 5,400 milligrams of drugs in his possession.

The police were able to uncover the details of many robberies of gold necklaces following the interrogation of the suspect in custody.

The suspect had snatched several gold necklaces including one weighing one pound from a businessman in Welikada.

He has committed all the robberies by using stolen motorcycles which had been abandoned after the robbery.

The police have found all the stolen gold items in melted form from several gold shops in Hettiweediya and Grandpass.

Police said the suspect, who is a player attached to a famous sports club in Colombo, represented the national rugby team in 2003 and was addicted to heroin in 2007.

He is a resident of Delgoda.

(Ada)