Shafie sentenced to five weeks jail over remarks on Zara inquest

Former Sabah chief minister Shafie Apdal was sentenced to five weeks in prison today for contempt of court over remarks related to the inquest into the death of Zara Qairina Mahathir.

According to the Daily Express, Kota Kinabalu Sessions Court judge Amir Shah Amir Hassan ordered the sentence to take immediate effect.

However, the court granted a stay of execution pending the Warisan president’s appeal, effectively suspending the jail term until the appeal is heard.

Shafie, who is also Senallang assemblyperson and Semporna MP, was convicted under Section 99A of the Subordinate Courts Act 1948, which carries a maximum jail term of six weeks and a RM300 fine.

Zara was a 13-year-old student in Sabah who died following an apparent fall from a school dormitory.

She was pronounced dead at Queen Elizabeth Hospital I in Kota Kinabalu at 11am on July 17.

An ongoing coroner’s inquest is examining the events surrounding the incident, which captured national attention following claims that she was a victim of bullying.

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