Yesterday (9) President’s Counsel Mr. Anuja Premaratne, who appeared for the deceased, informed Colombo Additional Magistrate Mrs. Rajindra Jayasuriya that the post-mortem report presented by the forensic doctor regarding the death of Mr. Dinesh Shafter, the former director of the Janashakti Group, cannot be accepted as it is contradictory.
Therefore, he requested the Colombo Additional Magistrate to postpone the issuance of the order regarding the death. The President’s lawyer made this request when the autopsy hearing related to the incident was called before the open court yesterday (9).
Mr. Premaratne also said that the service of the forensic medical officer Mr. Ruhul Haq, who has given the report, has been banned by the Medical Council for a period of 8 months.
After considering the relevant matters, the Magistrate adjourned the ruling on the death till March 8th and directed that the Criminal Investigation Department should submit a brief report on the investigation to the court before the 8th day, when the Criminal Investigation Department will consider informing the court that the investigation is still going on.
Addressing the court, President’s Counsel Mr. Anuja Premaratne also mentioned:
Under section 372 of the Criminal Procedure Code, you have the ability to issue an order based on circumstantial evidence regarding the manner in which this death occurred. According to the investigation officer and the family, the doctor has declared the cause of death. Mr. Dinesh Shafter has used not one e-mail but several e-mails.
At the last moment, the facts are revealed that he was in a discussion held through Zoom technology of a company. On that day at 11.23 in the afternoon, the deceased has used a complete note regarding this meeting. I request the officials of the Criminal Investigation Department to conduct an investigation in this regard.
According to the observation notes of a judicial officer who visited the spot regarding this death, it has been recorded that there were two two inch plasters above and two inches below the right shoulder of the deceased. There are signs of redness and red scratches near the left eye and near the right eye.
The observation notes have been used that the thumbs of both hands are yellow and the lower part of the body is red.
Mr. Ruhul Haq, the forensic medical officer who conducted the post-mortem examination regarding this death, has been banned from his service for a period of 8 months by the Medical Council on 20/12/2022.
The doctor initially stated that the cause of death was due to respiratory arrest due to strangulation with a string. When the post-mortem report was prepared, the cause of death was changed. Changed to cyanide ingestion and death by string strangulation.
As far as I know there are two types of cyanide. Potassium and sodium cyanide. A person who has taken cyanide will die within a short time.
A professor of an American university has expressed his opinion regarding gastric cyanide. He has said that the body can turn pink because the cells absorb oxygen. But this report says that the upper parts of this body are blackened. A person who has ingested cyanide should have burns along the veins. It is not recorded. Three parts of blood samples have been sent for the examiner’s reports. The taster’s reports have been called for the marked and unmarked blood samples as well as the stomach contents. There are 2.3 millilitres of cyanide in marked blood and 4 millilitres of cyanide in the stomach. But if death is due to cyanide poisoning, there should be 3 ml in the body.
And according to the forensic doctor, after seeing an injury according to the initial report, the muscles of the neck may be bruised. According to the post-mortem report, the death was due to strangulation. The post-mortem examination states that there is no blood clot or bruising in the neck before or after the muscle layer of the deceased’s neck is removed.
Further, the fingernails of the deceased have been sent to the government taster for the DNA report. The related reports have not been received yet. You need to get these reports to make a decision.
The facts surrounding this death are conflicting. This is unacceptable. I am studying the application of section 373 (2) of the Criminal Procedure Code.
On this occasion Manoj Gayanta, the investigating officer of the Organized Murder and Criminal Investigation Division of the Criminal Investigation Department testified and said:
“2022/12/15 renowned businessman Mr. Dinesh Shafter was found unconscious in his car at the Borella cemetery and while being admitted to the National Hospital it was reported he has died.
According to the order of the Inspector General of Police, we have handed over the investigation to the Investigation Division. Accordingly, 14 groups were investigated. Cemetery area, CCTV data check. A trained team was deployed for the deceased’s business information, computer data, telephone data, etc. The investigation was carried out regarding 12 CCTV systems from the house of the deceased to the Borella cemetery road. According to CCTV investigations, 2022/12/15, Flower, Colombo 7, the deceased has left his home at 2 pm. The CCTV footage of the garage and the gate has been recorded regarding that departure. Close-up examination revealed a white zip tie on the left side of the driver’s seat of the car he was traveling in and a cable similar in colour to the cable found around his neck at the time of his death.
It is recorded from the statement of Ariyavathi that while leaving the deceased, he started the car, took it a little further, checked the trunk, went back towards the house and started the vehicle again.
During the investigation of all these CCTV footages, no vehicle or any person was observed following behind the vehicle. According to the CCTV footage, the investigation revealed that the deceased was traveling alone in the vehicle.
After the deceased left the house, he bought a patty and a pizza from the Rudigu shop at Malalasekara Mawatha and returned to Borella Cemetery. The deceased left home at 2 pm and arrived at Borella cemetery at 2.18 pm. Devi Girls’ School front gate was visible towards the entrance to the cemetery from the front entrance. At 14.19 hours, their car was stopped near the Air Force Memorial, which was recorded in the CCTV footage of the Super Limit building. At the time of the crime, 6 bodies were to be brought to the cemetery for burial and 8 bodies for cremation. A death was to be brought for burial at 3 pm on that day, but there was a slight delay due to personal reasons of that party. To
At that time, it was revealed that the cemetery workers and people were present for the funeral. The public had come to perform a cremation before 14.15 hours.
The two employees of the cemetery, Mitin Thilan and Matasami John Anton and Susana Bhumi caretaker’s statements were taken. After the two workers finished their morning service duties and left for rest, the workers came again at around 2.30 pm to decorate the potted flowers they had cut for Burial. During that visit, the two had seen the car parked 200 meters away near the Air Force Memorial. They did not see a person getting in and out of this car. They saw that a person went from the back of the car to the front.
Later, while the two of them were doing their duties, a fat white person opened the front door and shouted. It is stated that after hearing the scream, the two went to the place. After the two of them went to the place, it was seen that a person in the driver’s seat of the car was wearing a banyan with vomit on the left side of his neck. He said that his hands were tied with a belt and there was a wire in the chest area. He tried to take him to the back seat to hospital but it was not successful, so a tall person who came to the front left seat of the car admitted to the National Hospital in the same car.
The lights of the vehicle were switched on and the vehicle was started and the tall person who came shouted “Boss Dinesh”. When the two workers saw him, they said that the deceased’s neck was heavily tied to the left side, there was a wire in the chest area and there was vomit on the clothes.
The deceased was unconscious in the Borella cemetery and the investigation was carried out regarding the zip tape that tied his hands and the cable around his neck. The cable was identified as a Dish TV cable. Accordingly, when the deceased’s house was inspected, a TV cable was found in the TV set in the hall leading to the wife’s mother’s room. The cable was identical to the cable around the deceased’s neck.
Government inspectors reached the spot and took the cable into their custody. Eight 50 cm ties similar to the white zip ties used on the deceased’s teeth were found in the house. The investigating officer took 11 25 cm zip ties from the office room of the house.
The cable portion of the deceased is 263 cm and the remaining portions have been compared with the cable in the house.
A TV set is not in working condition. The people of the house did not know about removing the cable here.
Statements were taken from the relatives and personal assistants of the deceased. It was observed that the deceased was in a state of frustration and anger since one and a half months before his death. He has not shown much interest in business. The mobile phones and tablet computers used by the wife and the personal assistant were taken into custody and the investigation was carried out.
The deceased has gone to Kalutara Amani Hotel for a friendly meeting on 26/11/2022. After meeting the employees of Janashakti Group on 27th at 15.5 hours, several letters have been prepared from room 144 of Amani Hotel. In this regard, CCTV footage and employee statements have been taken.
On 15/12/2022, Thomas Brian, who died, had sent text messages through the WhatsApp application. There were disagreements while doing business with several businessmen. A lengthy investigation was conducted regarding four businessmen. According to mobile phone tower reports, several people have not been connected. The business deal involving Brian Thomas was a big loss. There was also a case in the Criminal Investigation Department.
Brian Thomas 140 crores, William Gunawardena 12 crores, S Jeganathan 82 crores and Dipta Perera 10 crores. In addition, it is reported that a loss of 300 crores was incurred by buying a land in Nuwara Eliya. Due to this, there are medical reports that Mr. Shafter has received treatment from specialist Dr. Neil Fernando that he suffered from depression. Shafter had written a letter before his death in appreciation of the services of personal assistant Tris Perera.
Accordingly, the said medical cards and medical reports of an expert medical council were also submitted to the court.
“According to the final autopsy report regarding Mr. Dinesh Shafter, who died on 12/15/2022, it has been stated that he died due to cyanide ingestion. Thus, it is not revealed that a stranger came to the car to cause the death or that the death was caused,” he testified.