Sri Lankan accused of killing wife won’t fight deportation
31-year-old withdrawing appeal of order after waiting almost five years for trial
Sivaloganathan Thanabalasingham, accused of murdering his wife, has decided he would rather be deported to Sri Lanka than remain behind bars in Canada.
At his third detention review before the Immigration and Refugee Board on Thursday, he announced his intention to withdraw the appeal of his removal order, paving the way for a much faster repatriation.
But it is not clear whether he could be deported even before a judge hears the Quebec government’s appeal of the decision to stay the murder charges against him.
Thanabalasingham, 31, was set to stand trial in April for the 2012 death of his wife, Anuja Baskaran, when the charges against him were stayed because it had taken too long to bring him before a jury.
He became the first person accused of murder in Quebec to be freed following the Supreme Court of Canada’s Jordan decision, which requires that people accused of crimes be tried within 30 months of their arrest. He had waited 57 months for his trial to begin.
Thanabalasingham was released on April 7 after almost five years in jail, but was immediately picked up by the Canada Border Services Agency.
A week later, IRB member Stéphane Morin deemed he was a danger to the public and a flight risk and could not be released to the care of his brother and sister-inlaw. They had both testified that, as far as they were concerned, Thanabalasingham had done nothing wrong, and were willing to put a $50,000 lien on their house as a guarantee.
Thanabalasingham was appealing the deportation order, which would have him sent back to his native Sri Lanka. But faced with another three or more years in detention before the appeal is heard, he has decided to go back to Sri Lanka.
“I decided I would go back to my country,” Thanabalasingham told IRB member François Milo. “I’ve already done five years. I don’t have any case in court. I don’t know why I’m still in jail.
“They don’t want to release me,” he added, “because of some small problem.”
Thanabalasingham said he wanted to be deported as quickly as possible, but it could still be a long process.
Though he said he no longer fears returning to Sri Lanka, the IRB will have to withdraw his status as a protected person in Canada, explained the lawyer for the Public Safety Ministry, Ewa Staszewicz. The ministry will also have to obtain valid travel documents for him before he is deported.