Sri Lanka’s Court of Appeal has overturned the conviction of a Buddhist monk who had been sentenced to 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment for grave sexual abuse, ruling that the complainant’s evidence was unreliable due to inconsistencies, according to Newswire.
Seethawaka Soratha Thero had been convicted by the Avissawella High Court over the sexual abuse of a 13-year-old boy inside temple living quarters in March 2016.
However, a two-judge bench of the Court of Appeal on Friday set aside the conviction after finding contradictions between the complainant’s testimony at trial and statements he had previously given to police and a Judicial Medical Officer (JMO), Newswire reported.
According to the report, the prosecution case was largely based on the testimony of the boy, who stated that he had been invited into the temple premises while walking past. During the trial, he testified that the monk had asked him to apply oil to his legs and genitals.
The monk’s legal team argued on appeal that the complainant’s account differed significantly from the statements he had initially provided following the incident. The appellate court held that the complainant’s inability to consistently recall the circumstances that led to the alleged assault undermined the reliability of his overall account.
Citing established legal precedent, the court reaffirmed that a conviction cannot safely be sustained on the testimony of a witness who presents conflicting versions of the same event at different times, according to Newswire.
The Court of Appeal subsequently quashed the conviction, the 10-year prison sentence and the compensation order. The court also directed its registrar to transmit the judgment to the Avissawella High Court for immediate compliance.