The twelve individuals sentenced to death for the brutal murder of former Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna MP, Amarakirthi Athukorala, and his security officer have been transferred to Welikada Prison following yesterday’s landmark ruling.

The Gampaha permanent High Court Trial-at-Bar delivered the verdict against the group after a lengthy trial into the mob attack that took place in Nittambuwa during the 2022 unrest. Of the forty-one defendants initially indicted, the three-judge bench found twelve guilty of murder, while four others received six-month prison sentences suspended for five years.
In a split decision, the court acquitted and released twenty-three other defendants from all charges. Those spared the gallows were also ordered to pay compensation to the families of the deceased MP and Sergeant Jayantha Gunawardena. The transfer of the twelve primary convicts to Welikada marks the final stage of this high-profile legal process that utilised advanced forensic evidence to identify the perpetrators.