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by Sandasen Marasinghe

The damages on the windscreen, rubber beading and the corresponding damages on the windscreen frame of the defender jeep matched precisely, said the Deputy Government Analyst W. D. Gamini Sarath Gunatilake testifying before the Trial-at-Bar hearing the Udatalawinna massacre, yesterday.

The Trial-at-Bar comprised Justice Eric Basnayake (President), Justices Deepali Wijesundara and Sunil Rajapakse.

Examined by Additional Solicitor General Palitha Fernando, the Deputy Government Analyst stated that he examined a Land Rover Defender jeep which did not have a windscreen on December 10, 2001. It did not have the windscreen rubber beading as well. There were two deep scratch marks on the windscreen frame of the jeep. A windscreen rubber beading was in the jeep. He detached a beading holder from the jeep for further investigations. The windscreen which he examined at a cell in Teldeniya Police was also sans the rubber beading.

The witness further stated that the rubber beading and the windscreen matched precisely according to the characteristic features those two bore. At this stage the prosecution produced the rubber beading before the court as a production and Deputy Government Analyst recognised it.

The Deputy Government Analyst W. D. G. S. Gunatilake said that when he was ordered to examine as to whether these rubber beading and the windscreen were the articles that had been removed from the Defender Jeep, he examined the rubber beading on December 22, 2001. Then he circled two damaged places on the rubber beading in white.

Thereafter he compared the rubber beading with the windscreen. He observed that the two places on the windscreen where the cracks stretched from exactly matched with the two damaged places of the rubber beading. Later on he observed that the two damaged places of the rubber beading matched with the two deep scratch marks on the windscreen frame of the jeep. So he noted down in his report that the rubber beading and the windscreen were the articles removed from the Land Rover Defender Jeep (chassis number SALLDHAF71606279). The damages on the windscreen frame of the Jeep, rubber beading and the cracks on the windscreen may have been caused by an attempt to remove the windscreen from the vehicle with the help of a metal blade.

The Trial-at-Bar with the Deputy Government Analyst W. D. G. S. Gunatilake, both prosecution and defence counsel examined the Defender Jeep relevant to the evidence. Witness further submitted that the hole on the windscreen that seemed to have been caused by a bullet fired from the inside of the vehicle can be caused by a bullet that entered through the window of driver's door of the jeep.

Further hearings put off for September 8.

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