 Ponnambalam had been planning to view a Mercedes-Benz car with his son but on hearing about the suicide bombing they stayed at home.At around 10 am a man called "Shantha", who spoke fluent Sinhala, arrived at Ponnambalam's house, Gitanjali, on Queens Road in Colombo, and was shown inside.Ponnambalam and Shantha spoke for about thirty minutes before the pair left in one of Ponnambalam's Mercedes-Benz.