CA affirms the death sentence in the Hasitha Madawala murder case

The Court of Appeal today affirmed the death sentence imposed by the Gampaha High Court against the main accused convicted of committing the murder of former Kelaniaya Pradeshiya Sabha Member Hasitha Madawala. The main accused, Rangana Kumar Perera, alias Rangana, was indicted before the High Court of Gampaha and found guilty for committing the murder of Hasitha Madawala on or around January 5, 2013. In January 2013, at around 7:30 p.m., two people donning full-face helmets arrived on a black motorcycle and fired shots within close range at the deceased victim, who was leaning against his car along a road in the vicinity of his residence. In their appeal, the defense alleged that the trial judge had failed to appreciate the facts of the case correctly, including the wrongful reliance on the evidence of accomplices. The Court of Appeal's two-judge bench, comprising justices Menaka Wijesundera and Sasi Mahendran, held that the defense witnesses have not been successful in assailing the prosecution’s case to create doubt in their minds.