Murder_of_Seya_Sadewmi
Seya Sadewmi (16 September 2010 – 12 September 2015),[1] was a four-year-old Sri Lankan child who was abducted, raped and murdered.[3] The girl went missing from her house on 12 September 2015 while sleeping with her mother. After an extensive search of the premises by the police K9 unit, the naked body was discovered on the morning of 13 September 2015 near a canal.[4] The body was found 200 meters away from the house. An autopsy revealed that Sadewmi had been sexually assaulted and was strangled to death.[5] Four arrests were made by the Kotadeniyawa police,[6] and two of them were later exonerated after a DNA testing.[7] Third suspect, Dinesh Priyashantha subsequently confessed to the crime. Later he revealed that his brother, Saman Jayalath, manipulated him into confessing.[8] Once arrested, Jayalath concurred with Priysantha's allegations and was detained for further investigations.[9]
A subsequent DNA test revealed that Jayalath's DNA samples match with those found at the crime scene, and he was indicted on four charges.[10] On March 15, 2016, the Negombo High Court found Jayalath guilty on all charges and sentenced him to death.[11]