Sri Lankan cricketer Danushka Gunathilaka accused of rape dragged off bus by cops
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Sri Lankan cricket star charged with raping his Tinder date FOUR times at her home was just hours away from Australia when police dragged him off his tour bus
- Sri Lankan cricketer Danushka Gunathilaka charged with assault
- Injured star was preparing to leave the hotel to the airport when he was escorted from the team bus
- Gunathilaka spent Sunday night in police holding cells to appear in court on Monday
- He is accused of sexually assaulting a 29-year-old woman at a house in Rose Bay
Cricketer Danushka Gunathilaka was about to go to the airport to fly home when he was dragged from the team bus and arrested by the police.
The Sri Lankan all-rounder has spent the night behind bars and will appear in court in Sydney on Monday on charges of raping an Australian woman he met on Tinder.
He faces four rape charges for sexually assaulting a 29-year-old woman at a Rose Bay home last week.
The injured star and his teammates were preparing to leave their hotel in Sydney’s CBD around 1am on Sunday after crashing out of the T20 World Cup hours earlier.
Danusha Gunathilaka (pictured) was arrested by police early Sunday morning and taken from the team bus outside their Sydney hotel.
Danushka Gunathilaka (pictured) was injured but stayed with the team for their T20 World Cup Australia campaign
The team bus was moments away from the hotel’s departure for Sydney International Airport when police ducked and dragged Gunathilaka off the bus.
When his teammates flew to Sri Lanka hours later, Gunathilaka was questioned by police and charged. He was refused bail and spent Sunday night in the cells of the Surry Hills Police Station.
He would be very concerned, but “hold on well”, according to his lawyer.
“He was hoping it would come to court today (Sunday) so he’s disappointed it didn’t happen, but he’s holding up,” Ananda Amaranath said. The Daily Telegraph.
“He’s very concerned about what will happen if he can’t go back to Sri Lanka…these are serious charges and it could take a year or more to complete, so he’s very concerned about that too.”
Police allege Gunathilaka raped a 29-year-old woman at her home in an eastern suburb of Rose Bay last Wednesday after they met for a pre-arranged drink at the Opera Bar in Circular Quay.
Danusha Gunathilaka’s lawyer says star cricket all-rounder (pictured) ‘keeps up’
Gunathilaka is said to have sexually assaulted the woman four times over a two-hour period.
The woman filed a complaint with the police on Saturday afternoon with Gunathilaka being arrested 10 hours later.
NSW sex crimes commander Jayne Doherty said the woman took many steps to ensure her safety, including communicating with Gunathilaka for several days before meeting and going on a date in a public place.
She said the woman didn’t recognize Gunathilaka as a cricketer, but just matched him on Tinder.
“On November 2, they met for a pre-arranged drink, had something to eat and went back to the young lady’s house,” Chief Inspector Doherty told reporters on Sunday.
‘It was just a shame. It has nothing to do with meeting on a dating app or anything like that.
“The police were investigating and once we determined there was a case to answer for, we made the arrest.”
Danusha Gunathilaka to appear in court on Sunday after spending the night in a police cell
Gunathilaka was injured three weeks ago and did not play in the T20 World Cup but remained in Australia with his Sri Lankan team-mates.
Sri Lanka finished fourth in Group One with two wins and three losses, including a narrow defeat to England at the SCG on Saturday night.
England will face group two winner India in the semi-finals in Adelaide on Thursday.
New Zealand will play second place in Group 2 against Pakistan at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Wednesday.
Reigning champions Australia will not defend their T20 title after failing to progress past the group stage.
Danushka Gunathilaka (pictured) was charged with allegedly assaulting an Australian woman at a house in Sydney’s eastern suburbs