News
SC unhappy that order to arrest Royal Park murder convict not carried out for more than a year
View(s):By Ranjith Padmasiri
The Supreme Court (SC) has expressed strong disapproval that its order to arrest Royal Park murder convict Jude Shramantha Jayamaha had not been carried out for more than a year.
State Counsel Sajith Bandara told the SC this week that there has been a delay in arresting Jayamaha because the original case file in the trial against the accused had not been found. Justice S. Thurairaja, presiding the case, said this was most unsatisfactory.
Jayamaha had been sentenced to death over the murder of Yvonne Jonsson but was granted a presidential pardon by then President Maithripala Sirisena. The Supreme Court quashed the pardon granted to Jayamaha last year and ordered his arrest.
Mr. Bandara informed court that the Attorney General’s Department will take steps to obtain an arrest warrant against Jayamaha from either the High Court or the Supreme Court in the coming days. He also said that in response to a query by the Sri Lankan government, the Singapore government has conveyed to Sri Lanka that Jayamaha is not in their country.
Accordingly, a special investigation has been launched to identify which country Jayamaha is based in, he added. He said the SC’s verdict quashing Jayamaha’s pardon will be sent to countries where he is suspected to be hiding in, so that steps can be taken to arrest him.
The State Counsel also informed court that the Central Bank of Sri Lanka has commenced a probe on whether there had been any financial transactions involving Jayamaha since he fled the country.
The SC bench comprising Justices S. Thurairaja, Yasantha Kodagoda and Janak De Silva further ordered that former President Sirisena be discharged from the case as he had paid compensation amounting to Rs. 3 million to the family of Yvonne Jonsson, as ordered in the SC’s verdict.
The court further ordered the AG to submit a report on the progress of the investigation on July 28.
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