A 43-year-old father of four was shot dead in the Madipola Hatekanuwa area on Saturday (2) due to a long-standing land dispute, Galewela Police said.
The deceased was identified as Hakeer Mohamed, a resident of the area.
The suspect had fled after the incident, police said.
Dambulla Acting Magistrate Wasantha Ariyaratne visited the scene and conducted the inquiry into the incident.
Police said that two police teams have been deployed to arrest the fugitive.