Gunathilaka charged with rape after alleged incident in Sydney

ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022

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Sri Lankan cricketer Danishka Gunathilaka has been arrested and charged with sexual assaulting a Sydney woman.

Police confirmed the international cricket star, 31, was arrested at a Sussex Street hotel about 1 am on Sunday over the alleged incident in Sydney’s east last week.

Detectives from the State Crime Command’s Sex Crimes Squad and Eastern Suburbs Police Area Command commenced a joint investigation following reports a 29-year-old woman had been sexually assaulted at a home in Rose Bay.

Police allege the woman had exchanged messages with Mr Gunathilaka for days via an online dating app. The pair met on Wednesday and the professional cricketer sexually assaulted her, according to police allegations.

A crime scene examination was undertaken at the address on Saturday. Mr Gunathilaka was taken to Sydney Police Station and charged with four counts of sexual intercourse without consent. He was refused bail to appear at Parramatta Bail Court on Sunday.