Former Sri Lanka police chief sentenced to death over negligence in 2019 Easter bombings

Colombo: A Sri Lankan court on Friday sentenced former Inspector General of Police Pujith Jayasundara to death after convicting him of criminal negligence over the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings, ruling that his failure to act on intelligence warnings contributed to one of the country's deadliest terror attacks.

Although the death sentence was handed down by a three-judge High Court bench, Sri Lanka has observed an unofficial moratorium on executions since 1976. As a result, death sentences are generally commuted to life imprisonment. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has expressed support for continuing the longstanding moratorium.

The coordinated Easter Sunday attacks targeted three churches — including two Catholic churches and one Protestant church — as well as three luxury hotels frequented by tourists. More than 260 people were killed, including 42 foreign nationals.

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Investigations by a parliamentary committee concluded that police and intelligence agencies had received multiple warnings before the attacks but failed to take adequate preventive action.

Jayasundara is entitled to challenge the conviction and sentence before a higher court.

The High Court was also expected to deliver its verdict later on Friday in the case against former Defence Secretary Hemasiri Fernando, who faces similar charges of criminal negligence in connection with the attacks.

Authorities blamed two Sri Lanka-based Islamist extremist groups for carrying out the coordinated bombings. Those believed to have directly executed the attacks are no longer alive, while separate legal proceedings continue against individuals accused of assisting or being linked to the attackers.

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Meanwhile, Sri Lanka's Catholic Church has maintained that those identified as the attackers were not the true masterminds behind the bombings and has repeatedly called for a deeper investigation into what it believes was a wider conspiracy behind the attacks. (AP)