- He claimed he stabbed his ex-wife in self-defense.
- Dinush Kurera will be sentenced next week
A killer smiled as his teenage daughter described how she will be haunted forever for her deadly attack on her mother.
The girl was 16 years old when she saw Dinush Kurera, 47, repeatedly stab her mother Nelomie Perera, 43, in the neck and upper body on December 3, 2022.
Kurera claimed he acted in self-defense when he killed his ex-wife.
But a Supreme Court jury rejected his story and found him guilty of murder.
Prosecutors are asking that Kurera be sentenced to life in prison.
At a pre-sentencing hearing Wednesday, Kurera’s daughter told the court she had trouble sleeping or feeling safe in her home since her mother’s murder.
“What happened will haunt me forever,” said a statement read by the prosecutor.
“Having that image of my mother in her final moments will always be in the back of my mind.”
Dinush Kurera (pictured) has been found guilty of murdering his ex-wife
Kurera (left) claimed he was acting in self-defense when he stabbed his ex-wife Nelomie Perera (right)
The 18-year-old described Ms Perera as her best friend and said it was devastating that her mother was not there for life’s big moments, such as her recent Year 12 graduation.
She shared how difficult it was to testify during the trial.
“I feared having to speak in court, knowing that my words could be distorted,” the statement said.
“They tried to make me look like I was lying.”
Kurera, sitting on the bench at the back of the court, leaned back in his chair with his arms crossed and smiled as his statement was read.
He reacted the same way when a statement was issued from his now 19-year-old son.
The boy, whom Kurera hit with an ax before killing Perera, told the court he no longer wanted to have children.
“I was always told throughout my life that he was like my father,” said a statement read by the prosecutor.
“I’m afraid if I had children I would treat them the same way.”
Dinush Kurera’s daughter saw him stab her mother Nelomie Perera to death (pictured)
The boy said that he felt betrayed by Kurera and that the anger and hatred would not subside.
“He is no longer my father, he is simply another person,” the statement said.
Twenty-seven victim impact statements were presented to the court, 14 of them read aloud.
Kurera’s lawyer, Stacey Stanley, admitted the crime was a serious example of murder, given that Perera suffered 35 separate injuries and children were present.
Kurera had shown no remorse and continued to deny the murder, but Stanley argued that his client should not receive a sentence of life behind bars.
He said he had prospects for rehabilitation and that his crime lacked premeditation, as in other cases where offenders have received life sentences.
“It would not be beyond his power for the court to consider a sentence other than life imprisonment,” Ms Stanley told the court.
Prosecutors seek life sentence for Dinush Kurera (pictured left)
But prosecutor Mark Gibson KC said a life sentence was within reach.
Kurera went to Perera’s house with an ax and a can of petrol with the intention of threatening her, which Gibson said showed a level of premeditation.
The presence of two children was also an aggravating factor, the prosecutor argued.
Judge Amanda Fox is expected to sentence Kurera on December 19.