A fifty-nine-year old British woman who sold all she had to move to Sri Lanka to live with her 26-year-old husband has been left stranded after her husband was killed by armed gunmen.

Diane De Zoysa, 59, says she gave £100,000 to husband Priyanjana, 26, when she moved to live with him in Ahungalla, in the south west of the country, last year.

She had met the hotel worker when she was on holiday in the country six years ago, before returning seven months later to marry him.

However, her husband was tragically killed last month after being shot three times at a friend's house.

Mrs De Zoysa says her husband was killed by men trying to blackmail him for money.

She told the Daily Record: 'They thought he was a rich man as he had a nice house, a minibus and a tuk-tuk. He paid them but they wanted more.'

The widow explained how she had sold her home in Edinburgh to live with her husband in Sri Lanka last year.

She then bought a house in the country in her husband's family's name, as well as helping him set up a minibus service.

Mrs De Zoysa said: 'My husband and his family are very poor, so I have helped them. I gave up everything to join my husband here.

'I never imagined that I would be at my husband’s funeral. I thought that I would die first, seeing as I’m a lot older than him.'

She says she is now desperate to return to Scotland, but is unable to do so due to her financial situation.

The police investigation into the death of Mr De Zoysa is still on-going, according to local media reports.