- Star was found not guilty of offence in September 2023
- Was stuck in Australia for almost a year during legal battle
An international cricketer who was found not guilty of sexually assaulting his Tinder date in Sydney has poked fun at the case while going Instagram official with his new partner.
Sri Lankan star Danushka Gunathilaka was arrested in Sydney in November 2022 and charged with sexual assault without consent.
Police alleged he had removed a condom without consent, also known as ‘stealthing’, during a sexual encounter with a woman he met on Tinder while he was in Sydney for the Cricket World Cup.
Gunathilaka was found not guilty in a judge-only trial that finished in September 2023 and allowed to leave the country, with police pushing for an apprehended violence order to be taken out against him despite the verdict.
On Saturday, the 34-year-old joked about needing a lawyer for a possible return to court as he debuted his new, unnamed girlfriend.
‘I’m not sure what’s more terrifying, the wedding or the potential for a future court date. Send wine… and maybe a lawyer referral,’ he wrote alongside a series of photos of him with his new partner.
His followers celebrated the news with comments like ‘looking beautiful together’ and ‘glad to see you like this again’.
Cricket star Danushka Gunathilaka is pictured with his new partner in an Instagram post he made on Saturday
The Sri Lankan batter joked about his trial for sexual assault in Sydney in the caption for the post (pictured). He was found not guilty in a judge-only trial
Gunathilaka’s news appears to confirm he has broken up with the woman who supported him through the trial (pictured), which ended in September 2023
The post appears to make it official that Gunathilaka has broken up with Celine, the woman who supported him during his trial in Sydney.
In her verdict, Judge Sarah Huggett found that while Gunathilaka told the woman he preferred not to wear a condom, he used one during the encounter and had consensual sex with the woman.
She also found that police who attempted to prosecute the cricket star acted ‘unreasonably’ and revealed she had ‘significant concerns’ about the prosecution case.
‘I’m firmly of the opinion that if the prosecution had – before the proceedings were instituted – been in possession of evidence and all the relevant facts, it would not have been reasonable to institute the proceedings,’ she said.
The top-order T20 batter was arrested and charged with four counts of sexual assault in November 2022 after the woman reported the matter to Bondi police.
The court was told the woman told Mr Gunathilaka she would only agree to sex if he wore a condom, which he ‘grumbled’ about but ultimately agreed to.
Notes from the woman’s first police interview indicate she told officers the condom was taken off ‘against her will’, allegations Mr Gunathilaka denied.
During that interview, Judge Huggett said the woman failed to include ‘critical’ evidence she later provided to police in a statement some six months later.
The 34-year-old star, who played eight Tests and 47 one-day internationals for Sri Lanka, was arrested in Sydney while he was in Australia for the 2022 World Cup
Gunathilaka appeared very happy with his new partner in the post (pictured)
Ultimately, police only proceeded to trial on a single charge, that of stealthing, with charges relating to the alleged roughness of the sex being dropped.
‘The deficiencies in the prosecution case of stealthing, remembering that the prosecution case was not one of rough or aggressive sexual intercourse, were apparent,’ Judge Huggett said.
‘They were not the result of the factual findings made at trial … Nor were the deficiencies related simply to the credibility of the complainant.
‘There were so many inherent issues and difficulties with the prosecution case that should have been obvious to the prosecution at the outset.’
Judge Huggett ordered a certificate be issued to Mr Gunathilaka so he could be awarded costs.
