A man has received a life sentence after admitting to the murder of his wife, who was in the process of separating from him.
Thisara Weragalage, aged 38 and of Pentwyn, appeared at Cardiff Crown Court today (February 20) and was sentenced to a minimum of 23 years and nine months in prison for killing Nirodha Niwunhella.
Initially, Weragalage pleaded not guilty but later changed his plea, leading to his conviction on January 16, 2025.
Nirodha, a 32-year-old woman also known as Nirodha Dona Niwunhella, was mourned by her family after her death.
Police responded to South Morgan Place, in Riverside, Cardiff, at 7:37 am on August 21, following reports of a woman with critical injuries.
Investigations uncovered a broken knife nearby, and an autopsy revealed she had been stabbed multiple times, at least 20 wounds.
Emergency responders arrived shortly after officers and attempted life-saving measures, but sadly, Nirodha died at the scene.
Witness accounts identified a man, now known to be Weragalage, fleeing the scene in a Ford Fiesta.
CCTV footage confirmed the vehicle was registered to him.
Within the hour, police received a welfare call from paramedics about an incident on Seawall Road.
Officers found the suspect matching the description of the person involved in Nirodha’s death, and a nearby search turned up her blood-stained Ford Fiesta.
Weragalage was subsequently arrested on suspicion of murder.
This is a probabilistic continent or country-group signal from public name datasets. It is not proof of nationality, ethnicity or personal background.
Likely region signal
Europe
Continent
from Italy
- based on first name
27.8%
confidence
First-name region
Europe
Italy
27.8%
Court Outcome
Conviction and Sentencing Details
Sentenced
Detected legal outcome
eparating from him. Thisara Weragalage, aged 38 and of Pentwyn, appeared at Cardiff Crown Court today (February 20) and was sentenced to a minimum of 23 years and nine months in prison for killing Nirodha Niwunhella. Initially, Weragalag...
Life or indeterminate sentence
life
A man has received a life sentence after admitting to the murder of his wife, who was in the process of separating from him
Prison sentence
23 years and nine months
Thisara Weragalage, aged 38 and of Pentwyn, appeared at Cardiff Crown Court today (February 20) and was sentenced to a minimum of 23 years and nine months in prison for killing Nirodha Niwunhella
