GEORGE TOWN: A coroner’s court here has delivered an open verdict at the inquest into the untimely death of Australian Annapuranee Jenkins (pic).
Judge Norsalha Hamzah, acting as the coroner, made the ruling as she could not determine the cause and nature of death, or find any criminal element based on the testimonies that were presented to the court.
Jenkins’ remains were found in 2020, nearly three years after her disappearance in 2017 while she was on holiday here.
“There was insufficient evidence to establish the facts of the case,” she said in her ruling at the George Town court yesterday.
An open verdict is a coroner affirming the occurrence of a suspicious death but not specifying the cause.
Norsalha 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, 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 ehailing ride on a busy street in 2017.
Banners and posters of the missing woman, who was 66 then, were put up by the family member with contact details in the aftermath of her disappearance.
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 had 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 any third party criminal elements in this case or if there was no criminal element at all,” Norsalha said before declaring an open verdict.
Outside the court, Bernama reported that her son, Greg Jenkins, said he and his family were shocked by the verdict.
“We were hoping the coroner will see all the gaps that will lead to a reinvestigation to find the cause of death.
“For now, I will be discussing with my sister on the next course of action. We are not going to stop seeking justice for mum,” he said.
