brand logo

Death of Bathiudeen’s housemaid: Govt. Analyst probes handwriting sample

03 Aug 2021

  • English scrawl with Tamil meaning for ‘the cause of my death’
BY Buddhika Samaraweera Officials of the Government Analyst’s Department are currently investigating a handwritten sentence scrawled on a wall in the room where the now deceased 16-year-old girl employed at parliamentarian Rishad Bathiudeen’s residence in Colombo was accommodated. Speaking to the media yesterday (3), Police Media Spokesman Senior Deputy Inspector General of Police (SDIG) Ajith Rohana said that further investigations are being carried out into the death of the girl. He added the relevant handwritten sentence was found while inspecting the walls of the room at Bathiudeen’s residence where she was staying. According to him, the said sentence on the wall has been written in English to give out the meaning in Tamil to the effect of “the cause of my death”. The girl in question who had been admitted to the National Hospital of Sri Lanka (NHSL) in Colombo on 3 July 2021 with burn injuries had died on 15 July while receiving treatment. On 16 July, the relevant Judicial Medical Officer (JMO), submitting the postmortem report of the deceased, informed Colombo Additional Magistrate Rajindra Jayasuriya that the victim had been seriously sexually abused for a long time. Speaking further, SDIG Rohana noted that a photograph of the said handwritten sentence was taken and examined by the handwriting experts of the Government Analyst’s Department. Also, a few of her school books were sent to the Government Analyst’s Department to ascertain whether the note was in fact written by her or not, he mentioned. Bathiudeen’s residence was inspected by the Government Analyst’s Department and the Police Scene of Crime Officers (SOCO) on 2 August. The Government Analyst’s Department officials had searched the residence for nearly an hour while the SOCO had visited the residence in the afternoon of 2 August. The Police have so far recorded statements from nearly 40 individuals in connection with the death of the said girl. It has also been revealed that apart from the deceased girl, another 10 female domestic workers had served at Bathiudeen’s residence since 2009. Three among them, including the deceased, have died and the Police have recorded statements from all the eight surviving former employees. The victim from Dayagama, who was working as a maid in the house of Bathiudeen in the Bauddhaloka Mawatha area in the Borella Police Division, was admitted to the NHSL on 3 July with burn injuries and died on 15 July. Investigations have revealed that the girl was brought to the house in October 2020 and was 15 years and 11 months old when she was brought there. Her remains were exhumed on 30 July for a second postmortem by a court appointed specialist medical team to obtain clarity on the nature of the alleged sexual injuries suffered by the deceased. SDIG Rohana added further that the report on the second autopsy of the girl is to be submitted by the special three-member JMOs board. Bathiudeen’s wife, father-in-law, brother-in-law (for the alleged rape of another housemaid) and the broker who brought the victim to Bathiudeen’s household are presently in remand custody in connection with the matter.


More News..