Jude Wijesinghe: Sous-chef, 29, is arrested and charged with murder after the death of a young woman at the National Zoo in Canberra as police break up his unit and new details emerge
A chef who was arrested after his female colleague was stabbed to death at the National Zoo & Aquarium in Canberra has been charged with murder.
Jude Wijesinghe, 29, was taken to hospital and arrested after his colleague Tshewang Choden was found dead in a storage room on Monday afternoon. She is a Bhutanese national.
Police were called to Yarralumla Zoo about 12.50pm and found the woman’s body in a storage area behind a commercial kitchen.
It is believed she was stabbed with a knife before her suspected attacker tried to harm himself.
ATC Policing confirmed on Tuesday afternoon that Wijesinghe had been charged with murder.
‘ACT Police homicide detectives today charged a 29-year-old man with one count of murder at a bedside hearing following an incident at the National Zoo & Aquarium yesterday.
‘The man was refused bail and will appear in court on April 4, 2023.’
A chef who was arrested after his female colleague was stabbed to death in a storage room at the National Zoo & Aquarium in Canberra has been identified as 29-year-old Jude Wijesinghe (above)
Wijesinghe was arrested at the scene and taken to hospital under police guard to be treated for ‘significant’ self-inflicted injuries.
The cook’s shocked neighbors said police stormed an Oaks Estate unit complex at around 2pm before spending around eight-eight hours searching Wijesinghe’s unit.
The privately owned apartment complex consists of more than twenty single bedrooms. Residents called Wijesinghe a ‘good neighbor’.
“He’s been here about one to two years,” one resident said. ‘Before that, a group of boys lived there.
‘You would never know [he would be accused of something like this]. I was shocked.’
Neighbors said that, as far as they knew, Wijesinghe was single and that they had never seen a woman enter his apartment.
“I can’t believe it,” said one. “It’s all a bit of a shock.”
Wijesinghe 9above) was arrested at the scene and taken to hospital under police guard for treatment for ‘significant’ self-inflicted injuries
Officers flocked to the scene of Canberra’s National Zoo and Aquarium at 12.50pm after witnesses heard screams
According to social media, Wijesinghe has worked as a chef across Australia since migrating from Sri Lanka.
He was sous chef at Jamala Wildlife Lodge, part of the National Zoo & Aquarium.
Photos on his social media show him as a gym and motorcycle enthusiast.
He also has a separate online blog account dedicated to his culinary work, with images of dishes he cooks on the job.
Wijesinghe studied cooking in Melbourne for a few years and graduated in 2019 before moving to Canberra two years later.
Visitors unaware of the stabbing arrived at the zoo Tuesday morning to find it closed.
While police confirmed that Wijesinghe and the dead woman were co-workers at the zoo, detectives had yet to determine whether they were in a romantic relationship.
ACT Policing Detective Chief Inspector Hall O’Meagher said on Monday that police were called after witnesses heard “loud screaming”.
‘An autopsy is yet to be carried out, but at this stage we believe [the victim] died because he was stabbed with a knife.
‘The knife was found at the scene.
Visitors unaware of the stabbing arrived at the zoo Tuesday morning to find it closed
Two men were seen cuddling outside the zoo after the woman’s body was found
“The man was taken to hospital to be treated for what appears to be self-inflicted injuries and is in stable condition.”
Chief Inspector O’Meagher could not confirm whether Wijesinghe was known to police but said investigators were working to find out more about the couple’s background and a murder investigation had been launched.
He said police did not believe there were any direct witnesses to the disturbance, but that there were people in the area at the time who spoke to officers.
Chief Inspector O’Meagher stressed that police did not believe there was any ongoing threat to the public and offered his condolences to the woman’s loved ones.
“Our thoughts are with the victim’s family and friends and the zoo staff,” he said.
Police are seen at Canberra’s National Zoo & Aquarium after a woman was found dead on Monday
The zoo was closed in the wake of the tragedy, with police seen talking to drivers as they left the car park.
Visitors were only allowed to leave if they gave their telephone number to the officers.
A zoo visitor told Daily Mail Australia: ‘Staff did everything as if nothing had happened to keep visitors unaware and safe.’
‘[Police] stopped us as we were leaving and asked if we had seen anything.
“I told them I had no idea what I was about to experience and they said, ‘Don’t worry, if you had witnessed the incident you would know.'”
Police were seen speaking to drivers as they left the zoo
The woman said she later learned of the tragedy when a friend showed her a news article.
“Both me and my brother were in shock,” she said.
‘My brother was very upset. It was very frightening to hear that something had happened, especially so close to Christmas.
‘Our thoughts are with her family. At this point, no one should have to experience a situation like this happening to them or their family.”
Anyone with information that could assist police is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000, or via the Crime Stoppers ACT website and quote reference 7623644.
For confidential support, please contact LIFELINE 24/7 on 13 11 14 or 1800 RESPECT