Sri Lankan cricketer Danushka Gunathilaka has been arrested and charged with allegedly sexually assaulting a woman in Sydney, hours after the national team lost to England in the World Twenty20 in Australia. Gunathilaka was ruled out of the World Cup during the first round with a hamstring injury, but remained with the team in Australia. “Sexual Crime 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,” New South Wales Police said on Sunday.
The Sri Lanka Cricket Board confirmed the man was 31-year-old Gunathilaka. “Sri Lanka Cricket confirms that the ICC has been informed that player Danushka Gunathilaka has been arrested on charges of sexually assaulting a woman in Sydney,” it said in a statement. “SLC will closely monitor the legal proceedings and, in consultation with the ICC, will promptly launch a thorough investigation into the matter and take strict action against the player if found guilty.”
Police said detectives launched an investigation on Saturday after receiving reports that a 29-year-old woman had been sexually assaulted at a Rose Bay home in Sydney’s eastern suburbs earlier in the week. Gunathilaka was arrested at a Sydney hotel in the early hours of Sunday and charged with four counts of non-consensual intercourse.
“The pair met in Sydney for a pre-arranged meeting,” Detective Senior Constable Jane Doherty, commander of the New South Wales Sexual Crimes Unit, told reporters. “They had a drink and went to get something to eat before returning to the young lady’s house. “Police will allege that while they were in the home, the man assaulted the woman multiple times while performing sexual practices on her.”
Doherty said the woman took steps to ensure her safety, including communicating with the man several days before the meeting and having the date in a public place. Gunathilaka refused bail and will appear in Sydney’s Waverley Magistrates’ Court on Monday. Police say they will again seek to have bail refused. Gunathilaka made his international debut in 2015 and played eight Tests, 47 ODIs and 46 T20s.
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