During the announcement of the verdict in the inquest regarding the death of businessman Dinesh Schaffter, Colombo Additional Magistrate Rajindra Jayasuriya concluded that the death appeared to be a criminal act.
As a result, he ordered the Director of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) to promptly apprehend all suspects involved in the incident and present them before the courts.
Dinesh Schaffter, the former Director of the Janashakthi group of companies, was discovered tied up in his car at the Borella General Cemetery on December 15, 2022, under suspicious circumstances. He passed away a day later while receiving treatment in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the National Hospital in Colombo.
A five-member committee of experts, including forensic Medical Consultants such as Prof. Dinesh Fernando, Asela Mendis, U.C.D. Perera, S. Sivasubramaniam, and P.R. Ruwanpura, had been tasked with determining the exact cause of the businessman's death.
The family of the deceased businessman sought permission from the court to have their legal representative present during the information-sharing process concerning the post-mortem examination report once it is submitted. However, this request was denied by the Additional Magistrate. She explained that post-mortem examinations are conducted solely to establish the cause of death, and the law does not permit external parties to provide additional information on the matter.
Consequently, the Additional Magistrate instructed the CID to facilitate the release of the late businessman's remains, which are currently held at the Karapitiya Teaching Hospital, to his family. She also ordered the necessary arrangements to be made for the burial at the Jawatte Cemetery, in accordance with previous court directives.
