Khuram Sheik’s girlfriend had been raped — doctor

The JMO of the Karapitiya Hospital, Dr L.H. Dhammi Gunasekera, giving evidence before the Colombo High Court in the Khuram Sheik’ murder trial on Monday, said that his examination of Victoria Alexandria, the girlfriend of Khuram Sheik showed that she had recently been raped and sexually assaulted by the assailants.

Dr. Gunasekera giving evidence before High Court Judge Rohini Walgama led by State Counsel Thusith Mudalige said that on December 25, 2011 she examined Alexandria at the ICU at Karapitiya Hospital while the she was being prepared for emergency surgery for a fractured skull.

The doctor said she noticed serious injuries on the victim’s head which needed quick attention. She said if immediate surgery had not been carried out, the victim would have died as her skull had been fractured.

The doctor said that Alexandria was conscious. She said Alexandria had difficulty in breathing and was given oxygen.

Doctor Gunasekera said tat because of Alexandria’s grievous state she had examined her with extreme care and recorded everything Alexandria told her in English about what happened around midnight on December 24 at a Christmas Party at the Tangalle resort.

She said that Alexandria had told her that she and Sheik had been on the dance floor. After some time she realised that Sheik was missing. She had gone in search of him and found him lying on the ground.

Then some people had grabbed her; she had struggled to free herself but then lost consciousness.
When she regained consciousness she had found herself in the hotel.

The doctor said that Alexandria told her that she had then noticed that her underwear had been removed while she was unconscious.

The doctor said that she had observed several serious injuries on the victim’s head which the doctor had described in her report to court.

Dr Gunasekera said the neurologist who had examined the victim had said in his report that injuries on head were serious and unless emergency surgery were performed she would succumb to her injuries.

Dr Gunasekera said the injuries would have been caused by forceful blows with blunt instruments or glass bottles.

She said that there was an injury on the victim’s bosom that was due to a bite of a human. The doctor said that in forensic studies it had been observed that in many instances rape victims had been bitten by their assailants.

She said the wound on the left bosom was a contusion which would have been caused by a forceful blow with a blunt instrument. She said the injuries had probably been inflicted about 24 hours before she examined the victim. The injuries on the private parts of the victim could have been caused by blunt instruments or by forceful squeezing of those areas, the doctor said.

She said there were traces of soil, grass and sand on the private parts of the victim. She said such dirt was found in the private parts after having sex on grassy plots. She said two wounds had damaged the hymen of the victim. In conclusion, the doctor said the victim had been subjected to sexual assault and rape.

The accused Obadage Lahiru Kelum, Saman Deshapriya, former Tangalle PS chairman Sampath Chandrapushpa Vidanapathirana, M. Sarath alias Sahan, and S. Prageeth Chaturanga were indicted by the Attorney General for causing the murder of the Briton Khuram Sheik and committing gang rape on his Russian girlfriend Victoria Alexandria on the Christmas eve 2012 at a Tangalle resort.

(Daily Mirror)