The inquest into the death of Zara Qairina Mahathir was adjourned today after the coroner’s court was informed that the statement of the first child witness had been leaked on social media.
Coroner Amir Shah Amir Hassan postponed the hearing to Monday, saying he was “very disappointed” in the matter.
“Please take the necessary steps and lodge a police report on this issue,” Bernama reported him as saying.
He added that the next proceedings would be held via camera.
Lawyer Ram Singh, representing the student witness, said earlier that his client had been prepared to testify.
However, he said she and her mother became frightened and distressed after the statement went viral.
“I have seen the names and addresses of the five accused children exposed on TikTok. I seek the court’s guidance to protect their identities, as the public now knows that these accused are scheduled to testify,” he said.
Earlier today, SMKA Tun Datu Mustapha head warden Azhari Abd Sagap, the eighth witness in the inquest, said that one of the students accused of bullying Zara took 19 days’ sick leave from school before eventually transferring out.
He said the mother of the student referred to in the inquest as student A had said that her child was traumatised from alleged harassment by Zara’s mother via WhatsApp.
Azhari also said yesterday that another student was no longer staying in the same dormitory due to trauma.
He said besides student A, the other four accused students were still at SMKA Tun Datu Mustapha and had been called in for counselling sessions and to give their statements.
Zara, 13, died at Queen Elizabeth Hospital on July 17, a day after she was found unconscious in a drain near her school hostel at 4am.
On Aug 13, the Attorney-General’s Chambers ordered that an inquest be held after reviewing the investigation report submitted by the police.
This followed its order on Aug 8 for the exhumation of Zara’s remains for an autopsy.
