Sri Lanka Court Holds Ex‑IGP Guilty of Negligence, Awards Death Sentence

In a historic ruling, Sri Lanka’s High Court convicted former Inspector General of Police Pujith Jayasundara and sentenced him to death for his role in the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings.

The three‑judge bench found that Jayasundara received a specific intelligence alert on April 20, 2019, indicating that suicide attackers were planning assaults on Colombo’s Catholic churches and nearby tourist hotels. The alert was issued by the State Intelligence Service director, Nilanka Jayawardena.

Despite the warning, the court concluded that Jayasundara failed to mobilize police resources, conduct adequate security sweeps, or issue public warnings, constituting a severe breach of his statutory duties. The judges described his omission as “grave negligence that assisted homicide.”

The majority opinion, penned by Justice Priyanca Liyanage, stressed that the former police chief’s responsibility for public safety could not be ignored, especially in light of the massive loss of life – over 260 fatalities and more than 500 injuries.

Justice Virasooriya issued a separate dissent, contending that the prosecution did not establish the necessary proof beyond reasonable doubt, and therefore would have acquitted Jayasundara.

On the same day, former Defence Secretary Hemasiri Fernando received an identical death sentence for also neglecting the intelligence warnings.

The verdict underscores Sri Lanka’s commitment to hold senior officials accountable for failures that lead to large‑scale terrorist tragedies.