GEORGE TOWN: The High Court here has upheld the open verdict by the Coroner's Court regarding the death of Australian national Annapuranee Jenkins, also known as Anna Jenkins, after finding no conclusive evidence to classify her death as murder.
Justice Rofiah Mohamad ruled on Monday (April 28) that the cause of Jenkins' death could not be conclusively established based on the facts presented in the inquest.
However, she said the DPP has discretion under the Criminal Procedure Code to issue further instructions on how the investigation should proceed, particularly in the area where the deceased's body was found.
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"It cannot be denied that homicide is a serious accusation that the coroner must consider. Although there may be involvement by other parties, it remains speculative.
"This statement is just a suspicion because there is no evidence to support it," she said when delivering the court’s decision on the application for a revision of the Coroner's Court’s open verdict.
The deceased’s son, Gregory Steven Jenkins, had filed the revision application for the court to reach the same conclusion as the Australian authorities that his mother died from injuries to her left side, based on tests on bone fragments before she was buried.
Also present at the proceedings were DPP Lee Jun Keong, lawyer David Dev Peter representing Gregory, and the Australian High Commissioner to Malaysia Danielle Heinecke.
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Justice Rofiah said the court also considered that the initial investigation was conducted under the framework of a missing person case, not a criminal investigation like kidnapping or murder, and described the situation as "most unfortunate".
"The facts (of a murder case) will only be obtained through a serious and thorough investigation. It is unfortunate that the investigation was conducted under the framework of a missing person, and the investigation never led to a kidnapping case or any other criminal elements.
"This is because when human remains are found in an unreachable and unlikely location, it should give a new indication of a criminal element, that the victim did not just go missing but died at a very unusual location,” she added.
According to Justice Rofiah, unlike previous cases where the cause of death could be determined based on strong evidence, this case lacked such evidence.
"The court wishes to distinguish this case from the deaths of Teoh Beng Hock and Muhammad Adib, where the cause of death could be established based on solid evidence.
"Since there is no shred of evidence or findings on how the deceased met her end, the court has no choice but to uphold the open verdict,” she said.
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Meanwhile, Gregory, when met outside the courtroom, thanked the High Court judge for considering all the evidence presented and the arguments made by his lawyer.
He also hoped that the DPP, after consulting with his lawyer, would agree to reopen the investigation into the case.
On May 12, 2023, Coroner Norsalha Hamzah, in delivering her decision, said the Coroner's Court found that the evidence available was insufficient or did not meet the required standard to record any other verdict.
Norsalha said based on the evidence presented to the Coroner's Court, she could not determine the cause of death, the nature of the death, or find any criminal elements related to Anna's death.
Anna’s body was found on June 24, 2020, nearly three years after her sudden disappearance in 2017 while on holiday in Penang. – Bernama
