A man has been sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 29 years for the murder of his wife at a shop in Bootle, Merseyside. Nimalarajah Mathiyadaranam, 47, was given the sentence at Liverpool Crown Court on 16 January 2026 for the killing of Nilani Nimalarajah on 20 June 2025.
The court heard that Mathiyadaranam bought a block of knives and duct tape in the hours before the attack and entered Low Cost Food and Wine on Stanley Road while his wife was working. Prosecutors said Nilani Nimalarajah was stabbed 18 times in an attack they described as planned and motivated by anger after the defendant had been excluded from a family celebration connected to a daughter’s coming of age.
At the time of the killing Mathiyadaranam was subject to restraining orders intended to keep him away from his partner and eldest daughter. Reporting and court material say he had previously been given a suspended sentence and restraining orders in October 2024 following convictions for assault and harassment, and had admitted breaching those orders.
During the trial Mathiyadaranam changed his plea to guilty after jurors saw a video statement from his eldest daughter describing the impact of the killing. Judge Brian Cummings KC said the defendant showed no meaningful remorse and had acted with intent to kill.
Detective Chief Inspector Alan Nuttall of Merseyside Police said the force had been determined to get justice for Nilani and her children. The case has prompted local calls for better protection for shop workers and for more effective enforcement of restraining orders, local reporting said.
