Coroner declares open verdict in Anna Jenkins' inquest

GEORGE TOWN: An open verdict was declared into the death of Australian Annapuranee Jenkins at a Coroner’s Court here on Friday (May 12).

Judge Norsalha Hamzah acting as Coroner declared an open verdict in the inquest of Jenkins' death, whose remains were found almost three years after her 2017 disappearance while on holiday here.

Norshalha said she could not determine the cause of death, the nature of death, or find any criminal element based on the testimonies presented to the Coroner’s Court.

“There was insufficient evidence to establish the facts of the case,” she said in her ruling at the George Town court on Friday.

She said that although a post-mortem report confirmed that the remains found were of Jenkins, they were incomplete and the cause of death was listed as undetermined.

Jenkins, then 66, was reported missing on Dec 13, 2017 while on the way to visit her mother at a nursing home.

Jenkins, who was born in Parit Buntar, Perak, had returned for a routine visit to Penang with her Australian husband before she vanished after getting off an e-hailing ride on a busy street in 2017.

Banners and posters of the missing woman were put up by the family member with contact details.

On June 24 2020, police found human bone fragments and personal belongings in a bush near the Penang Turf Club in Jalan Batu Gantung, believed to be linked to Jenkins.

They were then identified as belonging to her.

Norsalha said the court has heard testimonies from various agencies and witnesses but there were no conclusive clues for the court to determine where and how the deceased had died.

“Taking into account the information and testimonies, the coroner’s court is unable to determine the real cause of death, and we are unable to determine if there were third party criminal elements in this case or there is no criminal element at all,” she said before declaring an open verdict.

Jenkins' case caught international attention including that of the South Australian government when a member of the legislative council, Frank Pangallo, took up the case on behalf of the Jenkins family.

The inquest was then called to ascertain the cause of her death.