AG’s Dept. to appeal after Kandy HC impose reduced fine against Galle Marvels owner
The Attorney General’s (AG) Department will appeal against the sentence given to Prem Thakkar, the Indian owner of the Galle Marvels after he pleaded guilty to a match-fixing charge under Sri Lanka’s Prevention of Offences Related to Sports Act No.24 of 2019.
On Thurday, Thakkar was given a two-year imprisonment, suspended for 10 years and was imposed a fine of Rs. 6 million. He was also asked to pay compensation of Rs. 1 million to West Indies cricketer Andre Fletcher who reported the approach.
In addition, the Kandy High Court has granted a request by the ICC Anti-Corruption Unit to download and examine data from Thakkar’s mobile phone as part of ongoing investigations before handing over the same to Thakkar. When the indictment was served before the High Court Judge Saman Kariyawasam, the accused had pleaded guilty to the charges of attempting to entice the player to fix matches.
The accused was said to have had a lengthy discussion with Fletcher with the intention of tempting him to perform a match-fixing act last year. However, Fletcher approached the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) Anti-Corruption Unit to report the incident. In response, the ICC had advised Fletcher to record the next discussion as proof. Subsequently, the following meeting that took place at Cinnamon Citadel Hotel in Kandy with Thakkar was recorded by Fletcher as evidence.
Thakkar’s arrest was made thereafter by Sri Lanka’s Sports Ministry’s Special Investigation Unit (SIU) under the Prevention of Offences Related to Sports Act. Fletcher alleged that Thakkar offered him USD 15,000 to deliberately lose a match and USD 30,000 to allow a ‘nominated bowler’ to participate under questionable circumstances. Additionally, Fletcher claimed that he was offered the captaincy of Galle Marvels as part of the deal.
Senior State Counsel Udara Karunaratne and State Counsel Gevindu Seneviratne appeared for the state whilst Wasantha Fernando appeared for the accused.
Sri Lanka became the first South Asian country to criminalise match-fixing with the introduction of the Prevention of Sports-Related Corruption Act in 2019. Under this law, offenders face up to 10 years in prison and fines of up to Rs. 100 million (USD 555,000), a penalty Thakkar would have to face if found guilty.