The gang consisted of Indian and Sri Lankan men and women.

The attorney general objected to the verdict, describing it as very light. He called for executing all 11 defendants. The convicts, on their part, also objected to the ruling. The judge gave them one month to appeal.

Court sources said the first, fourth and sixth defendants were sentenced to death for their crime, which was considered a war against society. The second, third, fifth, seventh and eighth defendants were each given a five-year jail term and 1,000 whip lashes.

The sources said the 10th defendant, a woman named Noorah, was sentenced to four years' imprisonment and 400 lashes. The ninth defendant, a man named Aziz, and the 11th defendant, a woman named Rajiyah, were both sentenced to six months in jail.

According to the sources, the accused busted the victim's home in the Anaikish area of the city one early morning four years ago. They broke into the house with the aim of robbing the victim but later decided to kill him. The sources said one of the criminals hit the victim on the head with a solid object and the others stabbed him to death.

They said the victim’s housemaid informed her Indian driver that she saw her employer put a large amount of money in his safe. The driver relayed this information to a number of Sri Lankan expatriates, who planned and executed the murder.