Kota kinabalu: A forensic pathologist informed the Coroner's Court today that the cause of death for 13-year-old Zara Qairina Mahathir was determined using a clinical examination and a computed tomography (CT) scan conducted while she was still alive.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Dr. Jessie Hiu, who performed the post-mortem, testified that these examinations also ruled out other injuries as potential causes of the teenager's death. Dr. Hiu explained, "The cause of death was determined based on the clinical examination and CT scan conducted while she was alive, as well as post-mortem findings, which ruled out other injuries as possible causes of death."

Dr. Hiu noted that during the post-mortem, Zara Qairina's brain was in an advanced state of decomposition, making it more challenging to ascertain the cause of death. However, she mentioned that skeletal injuries can still be assessed despite decomposition. Dr. Hiu, who has been with the Department of Forensic Medicine at Queen Elizabeth Hospital since 1998, was questioned by lawyer Nurul Rafiqah Afdul Mutolip, representing Zara Qairina's father, during the sixth day of the inquest.

She further explained, "Decomposition is an ongoing process of tissue breaking down until (only) the skeleton remains. In this case, I was unable to determine the exact cause of death from the post-mortem due to the advanced decomposition of the brain."

The inquest proceedings, presided over by Coroner Amir Shah Amir Hassan, are set to continue tomorrow. Zara Qairina passed away on July 17 at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, following her admission a day earlier after being found unconscious in a drain near her school hostel in Papar at 4 am. The Attorney General's Chambers ordered her remains to be exhumed for a post-mortem on August 8, before initiating an inquest into her death on August 13.