A document examiner told the coroner’s court today she did not refer a handwritten note by the late Form One student Zara Qairina Mahathir to a psychiatrist for evaluation.
Nurul Atiqah Noh, 44, from the chemistry department’s forensic science analysis centre, said this when questioned by lawyer Ram Singh, who represents a juvenile charged with bullying Zara.
Ram referred to Exhibit Y9, a paper with a note in which Zara expressed her deep distress to her mother, reported Bernama.
Asked if she had considered recommending that the note be reviewed by a psychiatrist, Nurul Atiqah replied, “No.”
Nurul Atiqah also said she noticed a stain on the paper but could not identify it.
She confirmed analysing another note, Exhibit Y8, dated Jan 5, 2025, and said blood traces on it had first been sent to the DNA forensics division before reaching her.
She also examined an exercise book belonging to Zara, which had the words “go and die” written on the “subject” column.
Nurul Atiqah told the inquest her division received 21 bags containing four notebooks, two textbooks and 15 sheets of paper identified as Zara’s.
She said the handwriting could not have been forged as the documents covered many topics over a long period.
“The examination found similarities in the style of writing, including rounded letters, clear formation, balanced spacing and consistent alignment on the page,” she said.
Zara, 13, died on July 17 at Queen Elizabeth Hospital where she had been admitted a day earlier after being found unconscious at 4am in a drain near her school hostel in Papar.
The Attorney-General’s Chambers ordered her remains exhumed for a post-mortem on Aug 8 before announcing a formal inquest on Aug 13.
The inquest before coroner Amir Shah Amir Hassan continues tomorrow.
