KOTA KINABALU: There is no fundraising initiative by the family of the late Zara Qairina Mahathir to pay for legal fees, say lawyers representing the family on a pro bono basis.
Hamid Ismail said the lawyers had learned that their clients’ bank account details are being circulated on social media platforms, purportedly for donations to cover legal costs.
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“We wish to clearly state that our client (Noraidah Lamat) did not initiate any donation or fundraising drive for herself to pay legal fees,” he said in a statement on Thursday (Aug 21).
“The bank account details being circulated had previously been used to accept public donations in the first few days after Zara’s death.”
However, donations to those accounts were stopped not long afterwards, he added.
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Hamid’s team comprises Farrah Nasser, Shahlan Jufri, Rizwandean M Borhan, Mohd Luqman Syazwan Zabidi and Mohd Syarulnizam Mohd Salleh.
Form One student Zara Qairina was found unconscious on the ground floor of her school dormitory in Papar, Sabah, in the early hours of July 16, and passed away a day later.
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Her death was initially classified as sudden death, but the investigation was reopened after allegations of bullying surfaced.
Her body was then exhumed for a post-mortem.
An inquest will be conducted from Sept 3, while five teenagers were charged in the Kota Kinabalu Juvenile Court on Wednesday (Aug 20) over the alleged bullying of Zara Qairina.
