THE man who raped and murdered Michelle Samaweera was convicted after a manhunt spanning more than a decade.
The crime took place 15 years ago and Aman Vyas was finally put behind bars in 2020. But who was his victim?
PAMichelle Samaraweera was murdered by Aman Vyas[/caption]
Who was Michelle Samaraweera?
Michelle Samaraweera was a 35-year-old widow who lived alone in Hainault.
She had a boyfriend in Walthamstow.
On May 30, 2009 Michelle was seen on CCTV buying snacks at a shop in Markhouse Road before she was attacked and killed by Aman Vyas.
Her body was found in a park by a dog walker but it took a decade for her murderer to be convicted.
What happened to Michelle Samaraweera?
Vyas entered the shop that Michelle was in before she left and started to walk along Queens Road – where there is a park.
At around 1.30am members of the public heard screams coming from the park but it was about 5.15am when a dog walker found Michelle’s partially clothed body and they called the police.
Michelle was pronounced dead at the scene and a post-mortem examination revealed that she had been strangled and sexually assaulted.
Where is Aman Vyas now?
In November 2010, 60,525 posters of the CCTV image of the suspect from a shop in the area were dispatched by police around the area.
A man who saw one of the posters recognised the suspect as a former employee and told police.
The man identified the suspect as Vyas and said that a family member still worked for him.
Vyas’s former boss provided police with evidence which linked Vyas to the crimes.
But police found that on July 2, 2009 a month after Michelle’s murder, Vyas bought a one-way ticket to India and left that same day.
HandoutMichelle Samaraweera was killed in 2009[/caption]
It wasn’t until October 4, 2019 that Met Police officers escorted him from Indira Ghandi Airport in New Delhi to London Heathrow.
Over the decade Vyas lived in New Zealand and Singapore before returning to India where he was caught.
Vyas was convicted of his crimes on Thursday July 30, 2020 after a trial at the Old Bailey in London.
He was found not guilty of one count of possession of a bladed weapon but was found guilty of the rape and murder of Michelle Samaraweera and the rape of three other women.
Vyas also was found guilty of one count of grievous bodily harm and six counts of rape.
He was sentenced to 37 years in prison.
He has also had all this time to reflect on his own life and address the issues that have turned him into the monster that he is.
Ann, Michelle’s sister
What has Michelle Samaraweera’s sister said?
Michelle’s sister Ann spoke out after Vyas’ sentencing, saying he is a “monster”.
She said: “Aman Vyas has had over 11 years to come clean and admit to raping and murdering my sister, and even longer to admit to all the other heinous crimes committed against all the other innocent victims.
“He has also had all this time to reflect on his own life and address the issues that have turned him into the monster that he is but he didn’t.
“Instead he has lied and fabricated stories for his own benefit. He will never understand what he put my mother, sisters, children, loved ones, friends and myself through.
“Michelle was always so thoughtful when it came to buying gifts for anyone, my daughter still has the beautiful blanket she gave her and she has slept with it every day up until now.
“One week before my daughter’s first birthday, I stayed up all night making colourful paper chains for her upcoming birthday party, only to wake up the next day to find out that my baby sister had been found dead in a children’s playground.
“Vyas has no idea what impact this has had on mine and my children’s lives.”