Agc Teens Charged For Alleged Bullying Not Causing Zara S Death

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The five teenagers scheduled to be hauled to court tomorrow will be charged with alleged bullying of Zara Qairina Mahathir and not for causing her death, the Attorney-General’s Chambers clarified.
On that note, the AGC maintained that an inquest will proceed on Sept 3 to find out the cause of the Form 1 student’s death.
This comes after the counsel representing Zara’s family urged the attorney-general to reconsider his decision and charge the teenagers under Section 507D(2) of the Penal Code, which covers offences related to provoking a person into causing harm to himself or another person.
“After scrutinising the investigation papers, the AGC’s decision to charge the teenagers under Section 507C(1) of the Penal Code covers only the act of bullying and is not linked to causing Zara’s death.
“Therefore, paragraph four of the statement made by the lawyers can be deemed as speculative and inaccurate.
“We stress that the charges under Section 507C(1) in this case are based on existing evidence obtained during the investigation.
“And the inquest proceedings must proceed to find out what caused Zara’s death,” the AGC said in a statement today.
Section 507C(1) covers the offence of using or making any threatening, abusive, or insulting words or communication – which provides a maximum punishment of one year’s jail, or a fine, or both.
Punishment under Section 507D(2) provides a similar punishment for the act of provoking into causing harm, but the jail term can be increased to a maximum of 10 years if the victim attempts to commit suicide or commits suicide as a result of such provocation.
Revise charges
Earlier today, the legal team representing Zara’s family urged the AGC to charge the five teenagers with a more serious offence.
“We appeal to the attorney-general to reconsider charging the teenagers under Section 507D(2) of the Penal Code.
“If the evidence at hand is still inadequate to secure a conviction under this provision, we hope the prosecution can be halted temporarily while a further investigation can be carried out from this angle.
“But if there is enough evidence to charge all of the teenagers with a more serious offence under Section 507D(2), we pray that they will be charged under the provision,” the statement read.
It was signed by six lawyers - Hamid Ismail, Shahlan Jufri, Rizwandean Borhan, Mohd Luqman Syazwan Zabidi, Mohd Syarulnizam Mohd Salleh, and Farrah Nasser.
Public uproar
ADSZara was pronounced dead at Queen Elizabeth Hospital I on July 17.
She had been admitted to the hospital after being found unconscious in a drain near the dormitory of SMKA Tun Datu Mustapha in Papar at 4am on July 16.
Police initially classified the case as “sudden death” and skipped a post-mortem after her mother signed a consent letter declining it, which is now under scrutiny for breaching police protocol.
Several rallies have taken place since the incident, demanding justice for her death, in which foul play is suspected. - Mkini

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