Mallawa Arachchige Sumith Nishantha alias Shantha vs. The Hon. Attorney General – CA/HCC/0074/2017-2024

In the case between the Hon. Attorney General and Mallawa Arachchige Sumith Nishantha alias Shantha, the court addressed the sufficiency and probative value of circumstantial evidence in establishing guilt for the offence of murder. It was held that a conviction may be sustained solely on circumstantial evidence if the chain of facts is complete and cogently points to the guilt of the accused beyond reasonable doubt. This decision reaffirmed the principle that every link in the evidentiary chain must be proven and considered collectively, as stipulated in established precedents including The King Vs. Abeywickrama, Don Sunny Vs. The Attorney General, and The King Vs. Gunaratne. The findings emphasized the correct application of the “last seen” theory and the necessity for an unbroken chain