CCTV footage has been released of Sri Lankan cricketer Danushka Gunathilaka’s date with the woman who has accused him of sexual assault in Australia.
According to News.Com, the footage shows the moment the cricket star and the woman walked around Sydney hours before she accused him of sexually assaulting her at her home.
International cricket star Danushka Gunathilaka is facing a judge-alone trial at the Downing Centre District Court after pleading not guilty to one charge of sexual assault without consent.
The charge relates to an incident on November 2 last year when it is alleged the 32-year-old removed a condom while having sex – known as stealthing – with a woman at her home in Sydney’s east.
The pair first met at the Opera Bar near the Sydney Opera House, where CCTV footage shows them embracing as they meet, before having drinks together in the city and heading back to the woman’s home via ferry.
CCTV released by the court shows the moment the pair meet and embrace at the Opera bar before walking to nearby Frankie’s Pizza for dinner.
The pair are then seen on the footage returning to Circular Quay where they embrace and kiss for 15 minutes before getting on the ferry to the woman’s house in the Eastern Suburbs.
Footage shows the pair cuddling on the wharf, as Mr Gunathilaka films the Sydney skyline from the water before hugging the woman from behind.
The woman told the court during her evidence Mr Gunathilaka “slapped her buttocks forcefully” while on the ferry, but said it occurred in an area of the boat which was out of view from cameras.
Mr Gunathilaka was arrested in the early hours of November 6 at the Hyatt Regency, where the Sri Lankan cricket team was staying at the time for the T20 World Cup.
He was then taken to Day Street Police Station where he answered questions for more than two hours.
The recorded interview was played to Judge Sarah Huggett during the trial on Wednesday, showing the cricketer become emotional as he spoke about a spiritual conversation he had with the alleged victim.
Mr Gunathilaka told police the pair had sex before they started talking, where the woman said she had the power to “see the future”.
“She has a different power, I don’t know what you call them…I was so interested about those things because I am a Buddhist…” he said in the interview before he began crying.
“We were talking about religious things…she can see in a past life and we chatted about that kind of stuff.”
Mr Gunathilaka told the police officers he asked the woman to tell him about his past life and she told him they used to be neighbours in Thailand.
The cricketer told police he became scared and “got a feeling” the woman was “a bit weird”, prompting him to tell the woman he wanted to go home. She ordered him a taxi.
The last message Mr Gunathilaka sent the woman was “Thanks” after she provided him with the taxi details.
“I didn’t text her and she didn’t text me also,” Mr Gunathilaka told police.
“That’s it, then I’m here.”
Mr Gunathilaka told police the sex between the pair was consensual, and he didn’t pack condoms with him as he didn’t think there was a chance of it happening.
However, Detective Sergeant Laura Beecroft from the Sex Crimes Squad told the court Mr Gunathilaka’s Burberry satchel he was wearing on the night was searched and two condoms were found in wrappers.
The cricketer was asked if at any point he put his penis “into her without a condom on”.
“No, no, definitely not,” Mr Gunathilaka replied.
However, Mr Gunathilaka admitted to telling police he preferred to have sex without a condom, but denied saying he didn’t want to use one during their encounter.
He said: “I just said ‘normally I don’t like to have sex with condoms’, I didn’t say ‘I don’t want to have sex without a condom’.”
Character witnesses on behalf of Mr Gunathilaka fronted court to tell Judge Huggett he was a man of good character and would never disrespect a woman.
Mr Gunathilaka’s sister, ex-girlfriend and a long time friend all told the court he has always been respectful, caring and gentle.
Reporting to Police
Earlier in the day, the court was told the woman first reported the matter to Constable Katrina Lackerdis at Rose Bay Police Station. She told the court that she didn’t have her police notebook with her so she wrote notes on scrap pieces of paper.
“I recall the (alleged) victim telling me within a short amount of time the accused proceeded to aggressively kiss, push, slap and bite her,” she told the court.
Constable Lackerdis told the court that she then sent photos of her notes to another officer who would be investigating the matter.
The officer was grilled by Mr Gunathilaka’s barrister, Murugan Thangaraj SC, who asked if she agreed it was “important” the conversation be recorded.
“You recorded these notes on scrap pieces of paper didn’t you … you threw it out didn’t you?” Mr Thangaraj said.
Constable Lackerdis told the court: “I shouldn’t have but I did.”
She told the court that she likely threw the notes out at the end of her shift.
Mr Thangaraj continued to press the officer: “You were rostered to perform station duties … which includes answering the phone … which includes taking complaints from the public, including serious complaints.
“Police procedure requires you to take proper notes.”
Constable Lackerdis said she used what she had in front of her because her “priority” was taking accurate and contemporaneous notes.
Mr Thangaraj asked if the police officer had told the alleged victim that she had been sexually assaulted.
“She told me she’d been sexually assaulted, and then I obtained a version of what had happened,” Constable Lackerdis said.
On Tuesday, messages between the alleged victim and her friends were read to the court. The alleged victim described how Mr Gunathilaka allegedly “switched” when they began to have sex.
The main issue in the trial is Mr Gunathilaka’s state of mind as to whether he removed the condom without the woman’s knowledge.
Mr Thangaraj told the court that his client denied having non-consensual unprotected sex with the woman, as there was no opportunity he had to remove the condom.
Meanwhile, the Crown alleges the woman only consented to protected sex.
The trial continues before Judge Huggett.
(News.Com)
