The Coroner's Court today issued a stern warning to the public against sharing or publishing on social media exhibits presented as evidence in the ongoing inquest into the death of Form One student Zara Qairina Mahathir.

Judge Amir Shah Amir Hassan delivered the reminder following a formal complaint on the matter, emphasising that such actions are liable to be treated as contempt of court.

“I received a complaint that some exhibits have been leaked. I would like to remind everyone not to simply share it. The authorities can take action on this matter,” he cautioned.

The inquest into Zara’s death entered its third day of proceedings, with the court hearing the testimony of Nurul Atiqah Mohd Noh, 44, a document examiner attached to the Document Examination Division of the Forensic Science Analysis Centre, under the Chemistry Department in Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

She testified to having received 21 evidence bags, containing four notebooks, two textbooks, and 15 sheets of paper, all identified as belonging to the deceased.

The inquest proceedings will resume after a lunch break.

Zara, 13, died on July 17 at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, where she had been admitted a day earlier after being found unconscious in a drain near her school hostel in Papar at 4am.

The Attorney-General’s Chambers ordered her remains exhumed for a post-mortem on Aug 8, before announcing a formal inquest into her death on Aug 13.

- Bernama