Sri Lankan Murdered in Israel: Body Sent for Forensic Examination

COLOMBO (News 1st) - The Sri Lankan Embassy in Israel reports that the body of Tharindu Shanaka, the Sri Lankan murdered in Israel, has been sent for forensic medical examination.

Ambassador Nimal Bandara stated that an autopsy will be conducted once written consent is received from the victim’s wife. The body will then be repatriated to Sri Lanka for final rites.

The suspect has been taken into police custody, though authorities have withheld his identity pending completion of investigations. 

A special meeting was held yesterday at the Salameh Police Station in Tel Aviv between the lead investigators and officials from the Sri Lankan Embassy. 

During the meeting, two Sri Lankans who worked alongside the victim were also brought in for questioning.

According to information they provided, 13 Sri Lankans had been staying in the same shelter. 

On the night of the incident, at around 11:00 p.m., the victim and another Sri Lankan had been consuming alcohol at a nearby park. 

One of them told police that while Tharindu Shanaka stepped away toward the park boundary, he heard an altercation with another individual. 

When he returned to the shelter and brought others back to the scene, they found Tharindu Shanaka with his throat slit.

The victim, a 38-year-old father of two, was a resident of Batapola, Kondagala in Galle. He had travelled to Israel last September for construction work.