“Daushka Gunathilaka has been arrested for alleged rape. The Sri Lankan team has left Australia without him,” a source close to the Sri Lankan team said. Sri Lankan cricketer Danushka Gunathilaka, who was with the national team for the T20 World Cup in Australia, has been arrested on charges of sexual assault, team sources said on Sunday. It is understood that 31-year-old Gunathilaka was arrested and taken to Sydney City Police Station in the early hours of Sunday following an investigation into an alleged sexual assault on a woman on November 2. “Daushka Gunathilaka has been arrested for alleged rape. The Sri Lankan team left Australia without him,” a source close to the Sri Lankan team told PTI. The Sri Lankan team was eliminated from the tournament after losing to England on Sunday. The left-hander played against Namibia in the ongoing T20 World Cup first round match and was run out for a duck. Later, he was ruled out of the tournament due to injury, even though the team qualified for the Super 12 stage. The Lankan team finished fourth in Group 1. New South Wales police, on their website, also reported the arrest of an unnamed Sri Lankan national. “Sex Crimes Squad detectives have charged a Sri Lankan national following an investigation into the alleged sexual assault of a woman in Sydney’s east last week,” the report said. According to details on the webbite, a 29-year-old woman was sexually assaulted at a residence in Rose Bay earlier this week. “The woman met the man after contacting him for several days through an online dating app; he then allegedly sexually assaulted her on the evening of Wednesday, November 2, 2022. “As part of ongoing investigations, a crime scene examination was carried out by specialist officers at an address in Rose Bay yesterday. Following further enquiries, a 31-year-old man was arrested at a hotel on Sussex Street, Sydney, shortly before 01:00 today. (Sunday 6 November 2022),” the report added. Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) is yet to issue a statement on the matter.
