Top Sri Lankan monk arrested for alleged sexual abuse of minor girl

One of Sri Lanka’s senior-most Buddhist monks has been arrested for the sexual abuse of a minor girl, the police said on Saturday. Venerable Pallegama Hemarathana, 71, is the chief priest of a prominent temple in the country. He was taken into custody on Friday night after a magistrate’s court in the holy city of Anuradhapura issued an arrest warrant against him and the victim’s mother for allegedly aiding and abetting child abuse.

The victim is a girl who is now 15 years old, according to the police, who was allegedly abused in the premises of a temple in Anuradhapura, police spokesperson FT Wootler told reporters. A complaint about the incident was registered in March. It was initially about the abduction and detention of a minor, reported the Daily Mirror media portal.