Four Journals Examined in Zara Qairina Inquest Incomplete, One Missing 64 Pages, Court Told

KOTA KINABALU, Aug 24 — All four journals examined in connection with the death of Zara Qairina Mahathir were found to be incomplete, with one journal missing 64 sheets, the Coroner’s Court heard today.

Testifying as the 77th witness, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) forensic science lecturer and researcher Dr Wan Nur Syuhaila Mat Desa detailed her findings regarding four journals: a green journal (W1), a pastel purple “Simple Style Book” journal (W2), a dark brown journal (W3), and an olive-green “Love And Peace” journal (WK9).

Dr Wan Nur Syuhaila, who holds a PhD in Pure and Applied Chemistry from the University of Strathclyde, United Kingdom, explained that physical examinations comparing the evidence against new reference journals showed missing pages across all four items:

• W1 (Green): Contained 97 sheets compared to 98 in a new reference journal (1 sheet missing or torn).
• W2 (Pastel Purple): Contained 53 sheets compared to 96 in a reference journal (43 sheets missing).
• W3 (Dark Brown): Contained 77 sheets compared to 98 in a reference journal (21 sheets missing).
• WK9 (Olive-Green): Received in worn and torn condition, containing only 54 sheets compared to 118 in a reference journal (64 sheets missing).

“My conclusion on the physical examination and reconstruction reveals that journals W1, W2, W3 and WK9 were incomplete at the time I examined them,” Dr Wan Nur Syuhaila testified before Coroner Amir Shah Amir Hassan.

She further noted that examination of journal WK9 revealed physical evidence of tampering and alteration. The original front free endpaper had been torn out, leaving a portion remaining at the upper left section, while the rear free endpaper had been torn out and pasted onto the front cover.

To uncover hidden details, Dr Wan Nur Syuhaila utilized Electrostatic Detection Apparatus (ESDA) analysis to extract indented writing impressions not visible to the naked eye.

Through ESDA analysis, she recovered indented impressions on pages 51, 53, 67, and 100 of W2, as well as pages 1, 4, 7, 17, 37, 50, 51, and 53 of WK9, despite the physical absence of corresponding pages in the journals. Indented impressions were also detected on the inner front cover of WK9, though technical limitations prevented complete extraction or reading.

Dr Wan Nur Syuhaila clarified to the court that she did not conduct handwriting comparisons to determine authorship, noting that handwriting analysis was carried out separately by forensic document examiner Tay Eue Kam using the material she recovered.

Zara Qairina passed away at Queen Elizabeth Hospital on July 17, 2025, a day after she was found unconscious in a drain near her school hostel at approximately 4:00 am.

–NMT