The Court of Appeal has upheld the conviction and eight-year rigorous imprisonment sentence imposed on a man found guilty of sexually abusing a six-year-old girl in Moneragala in 2010.
A two-judge bench comprising Justices P. Kumaratnam and Pradeep Hettiarachchi dismissed the appeal filed by S.M. Jayantha, confirming the judgment delivered by the Moneragala High Court.
The accused had been convicted of committing grave sexual abuse under Section 365B(2)(b) of the Penal Code after being indicted by the Attorney General for sexually abusing the child, who was his neighbour.
Following the trial, the Moneragala High Court sentenced the accused to eight years of rigorous imprisonment, imposed a fine of Rs. 20,000, and ordered him to pay Rs. 50,000 as compensation to the victim.
Challenging the conviction and sentence, the accused had appealed to the Court of Appeal, arguing that the trial judge had improperly evaluated the prosecution’s evidence and failed to adequately consider inconsistencies in the case.
However, the Court of Appeal rejected the arguments, stating that the victim’s testimony was supported by clear and convincing evidence from independent witnesses.
The appellate court ruled that the trial judge had correctly determined that the prosecution had proven the charges beyond reasonable doubt and found no grounds to interfere with either the conviction or the sentence.
Accordingly, the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal and affirmed the decision of the Moneragala High Court.
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