Kuala lumpur: All four journals examined in connection with the death of Zara Qairina Mahathir were incomplete, with one of them found to have 64 sheets missing, the Coroner's Court heard today. The 77th witness, Dr. Wan Nur Syuhaila Mat Desa, a forensic science lecturer and researcher from Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), provided details on the condition of the journals during the inquest proceedings.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, Dr. Wan Nur Syuhaila, who holds a PhD in Pure and Applied Chemistry from the University of Strathclyde, United Kingdom, stated that the journals comprised a green journal marked W1, a pastel purple 'Simple Style Book' journal (W2), a dark brown journal (W3), and an olive-green 'Love And Peace' journal (WK9). Her examination revealed discrepancies in the number of sheets when compared with new reference journals of the same type.
The witness explained that W1 contained 97 sheets instead of 98, indicating a missing or torn sheet. W2 had only 53 sheets, leaving 43 sheets unaccounted for, and W3 contained 77 sheets, with 21 sheets missing. WK9, in worn and torn condition, contained 54 sheets compared to 118 in the reference journal, missing 64 sheets.
Dr. Wan Nur Syuhaila further detailed her findings, noting that WK9 showed evidence of modification and alteration. She observed that the original front free endpaper had been torn out, and part of it remained in the upper left section. The rear free endpaper was torn out and pasted onto the front cover, indicating alterations.
Using the Electrostatic Detection Apparatus (ESDA) method, Wan Nur Syuhaila examined the journals and loose pages for indented writing impressions. She found impressions on specific pages of W2 and WK9 but noted the absence of corresponding pages in the journals. Despite detecting impressions on WK9's inner front cover page, she was unable to extract them due to technical limitations.
Dr. Wan Nur Syuhaila clarified that she did not conduct handwriting comparisons to determine authorship and that forensic document examiner Tay Eue Kam carried out handwriting analysis using the recovered material. The inquest into Zara Qairina's death, who died at Queen Elizabeth Hospital on July 17, 2025, a day after being found unconscious near her school hostel, continued at 2.30 pm with the same witness.