Presidential pardon for Jude Jayamaha constitutional, says Sirisena

Former President Maithripala Sirisena has stated that the decision to grant a Presidential Pardon to Jude Jayamaha, convicted for the murder of Yvonne Jonsson at the Royal Park Condominium complex in Rajagiriya in 2005, was made by the provisions of the Constitution. 

 

 

Jayamaha, the son of a wealthy businessman, was initially sentenced to 12 years in prison in 2006. Still, in 2012, the Court of Appeal gave him the death sentence, which the Supreme Court later upheld. 

 

 

However, in November 2019, during his final week as President, Sirisena granted Jayamaha a presidential pardon. Jayamaha left the country after his release, and his current whereabouts remain unknown.