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

One of Sri Lankas senior most Buddhist monks has been arrested for the sexual abuse of a minor girl, the police said on Saturday. Hemarathana was arrested from the emergency unit of a private hospital in capital city Colombo - around 200 km from Anuradhapura - where he was undergoing some treatment, police said.

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 abduction and detention of a minor, reported the Daily Mirror media portal. When a probe was initiated, the investigators found out more. Hemarathana was arrested from the emergency unit of a private hospital in capital city Colombo - around 200 km from Anuradhapura - where he was undergoing some treatment, police said. The mother has also been arrested, police said. Hemarathana is the top Buddhist monk from Atamasthana, a group of sacred shrines, located in the ancient city of Anuradhapura. These sites are visited by large numbers of Buddhist pilgrims annually.