JAGATH ARACHCHIGE CONVICTED IN BRISTOL FOR KIDNAP AND SEXUAL ASSAULTS
By day, accountant Jagath Arachchige appeared charming and highly professional.However, at night, he acted as a sexual predator, cruising around Bristol city center in his blue Honda Accord and targeting vulnerable women leaving nightclubs who mistook him for a cab driver.
After picking up one woman, Arachchige kidnapped her for five hours, during which he sexually assaulted her.
Just 15 hours later, he kidnapped a second woman but did not assault her.
The 44-year-old, of Eighth Avenue in Filton, denied any wrongdoing.
Nonetheless, a jury at Bristol Crown Court found him guilty of kidnapping and sexual assault, as well as kidnapping with intent to commit a sex offence, in December 2017.
Judge Mark Horton sentenced him to a 16-year extended prison term, consisting of 12 years in custody (to serve two-thirds) and four years on extended licence.
He classified Arachchige as a dangerous offender, remarking: "It is clear that whilst you present to the world as an engaging, charming, and capable accountant with an apparent calm and quiet manner, this mask perfectly concealed the callous, and deliberate deception and manipulative skills of a predatory sexual offender." Judge Horton also prohibited Arachchige from working with children and vulnerable adults and ordered him to sign the Sex Offender Register for life.
He commended the police investigation and noted: "I also wish to comment that in this case both of the victims were in no way careless in their behaviour.
Both sought what they reasonably believed to be a lawful taxi service to get home.
Their trust and precautions were deliberately exploited by this defendant in a planned manner." The court heard that Arachchige turned to extramarital websites after his marriage’s intimacy declined.
In November 2017, police discovered him in his car at a well-known sex spot with an intoxicated student.
Officers removed her from his vehicle and issued strong advice regarding his conduct.
Approximately two weeks later, Arachchige picked up an inebriated young woman who had left a Bristol nightclub.
Instead of providing her with a safe, legal taxi ride, he kidnapped her for five hours.
This included visits to a sex spot and even booking a room at a motel.
The court was told he groped her bare chest and attempted, but failed, to touch her intimately under her clothes.
When the woman revealed that her mother was involved with police, Arachchige took her home.
However, only 15 hours afterward, he committed another offense by kidnapping a second woman whom he picked up under the assumption that he was her taxi driver.
She managed to escape unmolested.
Prosecutor Richard Posner presented impact statements from both women, who expressed ongoing struggles with anxiety and trust issues following their experiences.
One stated, "I feel it is going to stay with me for the rest of my life." Defending, Robert Morgan-Jones explained that Arachchige's marriage had become emotionally and sexually unfulfilling, leading to feelings of rejection and isolation, which contributed to his behavior.
