July 09, Colombo (LNW): The Colombo High Court has sentenced eight men to death after finding them guilty of murdering a woman and seriously injuring two others in a brutal attack that took place more than three decades ago.
Delivering the verdict on Thursday, High Court Judge Buddhika Sri Ragala ruled that the prosecution had established the case beyond reasonable doubt, concluding that the evidence presented during the lengthy trial clearly proved the involvement of the accused in the offences.
The case relates to an incident that occurred on or around September 21, 1993 in the Tharawatte area of Colombo, where the group was accused of carrying out a violent assault using sharp weapons, clubs, as well as physical force.
According to the indictment filed by the Attorney General’s Department, the accused were members of an unlawful assembly that acted with the common intention of attacking H.B. Kusumawathi and the late Velayutham Udayakumar. During the incident, Kusumawathi sustained fatal injuries after allegedly being assaulted with sharp weapons, clubs, hands and feet.
The indictment further stated that two other victims, Kathiravelu Lingamoorthy and Jagath Siri Perera, suffered grievous injuries after being attacked with sharp weapons and clubs. In total, the accused faced seven charges arising from the incident.
The eight individuals sentenced to death are P.A.K. Nishantha Kumara, Ishad Moses, Rohan Janaka Sampath Sagara, Anil Indrajith, Kanagaraja Thiron, Somarathna Silva, Hikkaduwa Liyanage Nihal and K.W. Ajith Kulathunga.
Attorney-at-Law Palitha Fernando appeared on behalf of the Attorney General during the proceedings.
When the judgment was delivered, seven of the accused were present in court. The eighth accused, Ajith Kulathunga, failed to appear, prompting the presiding judge to issue an open warrant for his arrest.
Under Sri Lankan law, death sentences imposed by the courts are subject to the country’s legal framework and longstanding policy, under which executions have not been carried out for decades.