Former Inspector General of Police (IGP) Pujith Jayasundara and former Defence Secretary Hemasiri Fernando have been sentenced to death by a Colombo Permanent Trial-at-Bar over their failure to prevent the 2019 Easter Sunday terrorist attacks despite receiving prior intelligence warnings.
The three-judge bench found both men guilty on multiple charges, including criminal negligence, dereliction of duty, murder and attempted murder. The verdict was delivered by a majority decision, with two judges voting to convict while one judge dissented and favoured acquittal.
The case centred on allegations that the two former top officials failed to act on advance intelligence indicating that coordinated terrorist attacks were imminent, resulting in one of the deadliest incidents in Sri Lanka’s history.
The Easter Sunday bombings on April 21, 2019 targeted churches and luxury hotels, killing 279 people and injuring more than 500 others.
