Maileen Arachchige Suramya Damayanthi Perera v. Hon. Attorney General – CA CASE NO:-320/2012-2015

In the case between Maileen Arachchige Suramya Damayanthi Perera (Accused-Appellant) and the Hon. Attorney General (Respondent), the court addressed the issue of whether the conviction and life sentences imposed for possession and trafficking of 9 grams of heroin were justified based on the evidence presented. It was held that the conviction and sentence could not be sustained, as the appellate review uncovered material contradictions between key prosecution witnesses and inadequacies in the trial judge’s assessment of fact and credibility. The decision reaffirmed the principle that a conviction must rest upon clear, reliable, and corroborated evidence, and that when reasonable doubt arises from evidentiary inconsistencies, such doubt must be resolved in favour of the accused. Reliance was