Jail term of 36 years for rape of underage girl

By Dilip Jayasekara   

An accused who stood indicted with the rape of his underage  sister-in-law and pleaded guilty under three counts was sentenced to 12  years rigorous imprisonment under each count amounting to 36-years  imprisonment to be served concurrently by Hambantota High Court Judge  Priyantha Liyanage on Thursday (16).   

He was fined Rs.15,000 and ordered to pay compensation of  Rs. 600,000 to the aggrieved party. The accused was sentenced to a further  18 months of rigorous imprisonment in default of the fine and two-year  rigorous imprisonment in default of the compensation payment.   

During the trial, it transpired that the accused Herath  Mudiyanselage Weerasekara (56) had raped the girl at times since  February 01, 2018. The girl had complained to her sister, the accused’s  wife, about the incident but she had ignored it and advised her to keep  it a secret.   

Police told court that when the girl conceived by the suspect, her elder brother had complained to Kataragama Police.   

State Counsel Nimanka Jajawickrema prosecuted.