By Olivia Miwil
KOTA KINABALU: Students at SMKA Tun Mustapha had spoken about an alleged theft case involving the late Zara Qairina Mahathir prior to the 13-year-old's death.
The inquest's sixth witness, security guard Linah Mansoding, told the Coroner's Court that students had talked about Zara being accused of stealing from another student, referred to as "A".
The school guard testified that on July 15, A told her she had lost her wallet.
"She said that her wallet was in her bag in the morning, but had gone missing at night.
"There was RM300 in cash and a bank card inside. However, she did not say who took her wallet," Linah said, adding that she advised A that students should have asked their wardens to safeguard their money.
Lawyer Shahlan Jufri, who is representing Zara's family, examined Linah over the alleged theft before Coroner Amir Shah Amir Hassan.
Linah also testified that student A had reported the missing wallet to senior students.
She said one of the wardens, Ustaz Rizani, had followed up on the allegations by speaking to two students and interviewing others individually.
"When Zara was accused of stealing, the Form 4 students had called and questioned her," Linah said.
Shahlan asked why Zara was singled out among the many students in the dormitory. Linah, however, said she was unsure.
She added that since the 2025 school session began in March, she had only interacted with Zara twice — once after coming across the teenager's TikTok video, and another when she forbade the 13-year-old from being at the laundry area past midnight.
Referring to the TikTok video, Linah said she had tried to ask Zara who was the girl in the footage, that Zara regretted meeting, but the teenager refused to elaborate.
Zara was found unconscious on July 16 and pronounced dead the following day at the Queen Elizabeth hospital.
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