Sri Lankan authorities arrested a senior Buddhist monk on Saturday for the alleged sexual abuse of an underage girl, police said, marking the highest-profile case involving clergy in the country.
Pallegama Hemarathana, 71, was arrested at a private hospital in the capital Colombo where he had sought treatment over the weekend amid an investigation into the alleged abuse of the 11-year-old girl in 2022.
The crime is alleged to have taken place at a highly venerated temple in Anuradhapura, around 200km (125 miles) north of Colombo, where Hemarathana is the chief priest.

“We will be guided by the magistrate on further action,” a police statement said on Saturday.
Advertisement
The monk will soon be presented before a judge.
Authorities added that the victim’s mother has also been arrested for aiding and abetting the monk.
Advertisement
The development comes a day after a local court in Anuradhapura imposed a foreign travel ban on the monk.

Don't Miss:
-
Hong Kong finance chief says economy grew in third quarter, warns of external risks
-
Despite rising yields and political gridlock, France not facing a debt crisis: analysts
-
Nobel Chemistry Prize awarded to Henri B. Kagan and Kenso Soai
-
Ex-Buddhist monk who founded Thai Aids hospice convicted of embezzlement
-
Nasa releases striking image of dawn on Mars

How Real Is the US Withdrawal from the Middle East?
From Iran to China: An Emerging Trans-Central Asian Corridor
New documents show how a retail chain’s sales practices helped put guns on US streets