Court documents indicate that a Sri Lankan cricketer accused of raping a woman in Australia during the T20 World Cup choked her so violently that she “feared for her life.”
Sunday, Danushka Gunathilaka, 31, was charged with four charges of rape and accused of removing a condom during sex with the victim.
During a police interrogation, the offender denied violence and lack of consent.
On Monday, he was denied bail after police argued he posed a flight risk.
On Wednesday, a court suppression order was removed, allowing the publication of the documents police used to oppose his bail.
According to the police facts presented to the court, Mr. Gunathilaka and the unidentified 29-year-old complainant met on Tinder on October 29.
According to the documents, they agreed to meet in Sydney on 2 November for drinks and dinner before returning to the complainant’s residence.
Mr. Gunathilaka is accused of engaging in “forced” sexual activity with the woman and choking her three times, once for as long as thirty seconds.
“The complainant feared for her life and was unable to escape the defendant,” police allege in court records.
According to the records, the woman also observed a condom on the floor during the alleged assaults, despite having asked Mr. Gunathilaka to wear one.
According to police, the woman made it “obvious” that she did not consent to having sex without a condom or while being choked.
The next day, before calling the police, the complainant reportedly told two friends about the incident, contacted a counseling program, and saw her doctor.
They claim that she subsequently underwent a sexual assault forensic investigation at the hospital and a brain scan to determine if she sustained any injuries as a result of the repeated choking.
In a police interview recorded in the court documents, Mr. Gunathilaka denied any violence and stated that the sex had been consensual. However, when probed by detectives about conversations with the complainant about consent, he could not recollect them.
According to new “affirmative consent” rules in New South Wales (NSW), where the claimed incident happened, a person must say or do something to indicate their consent for sexual activity.
The June reforms made “stealing” – the removal of a condom without consent – an act of sexual assault.
Mr. Gunathilaka has been suspended from all forms of the game, and Sri Lanka Cricket has created a commission to investigate the event.
