Sri Lankan cricketer Dhanushka Gunathilaka, who was in remand in that country on charges of sexual assault of an Australian woman, has been granted bail by the country’s court.
That was after bail of 150,000 dollars was offered after presenting before the court that he had the support of the Sri Lanka Cricket Association and the government.
Magistrate Janet Wahlquist granted Danushka bail on conditions including daily reporting to the police, a curfew from 9 pm to 6 am, not to contact the complainant in any way and prohibiting access to Tinder and dating apps, in addition to cash bail.
On November 7, the original bail application was rejected by the Downing Center court. He has since spent 11 nights in custody.
His lawyers have applied for bail in the New South Wales Supreme Court, which was due to be heard on December 8. However, the matter was brought up in the local court list today when defence lawyer Murugan Thangaraj asked the Supreme Court to release Gunathilaka.
Police have argued in court that there are two unacceptable risks that could arise if bail is granted. That is, the defendant’s non-appearance and the possibility that he may endanger the plaintiff’s safety.
The woman related to this incident said that she was being ‘harassed by unknown persons with Sri Lankan names on social media and therefore had to close her social network account.
The defence lawyer said that there had been “matters through social media” after the arrest, but they had not been prompted or encouraged by Gunathilake.
She has argued here that Danushka Gunathilaka also remembers the address of the complainant.
Thangaraj submitted that his client was “supported by the Sri Lanka Cricket Association and the [Sri Lankan Government]”.
‘If he breaks his bail, his career will be over,’ he also told the court.
The court said that Danushka Gunathila, who has no criminal record, will face trial till 2024.
Thangaraj said if Gunathilaka was an Australian citizen, “of course he would be on bail under these circumstances”.
He also said that his client agreed to a police interview. He also said that in this incident, he denied any kind of violence and denied the fact that it was done without consent.
Police say Gunathilaka accompanied the 29-year-old woman to her home, where he allegedly “groped over her” by kissing and touching her.
The case will be called again on January 12.
31-year-old Dhanushka Gunathilake, was arrested in the early hours of November 6 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel on Sussex Street before his team left for Sri Lanka without him after the World Twenty20 defeat against England.
