Police have continued to stick to their version of events – believing that Nora, 15, climbed out of a window at a resort outside Kuala Lumpur and wandered off
Image: Quoirin Family/AFP via Getty Ima)
A court in Malaysia has overturned the verdict of “misadventure” into the death of Irish teenager Nora Quoirin.
The verdict was overturned in the High Court on Wednesday, following a challenge from Nora’s family.
It was replaced with an “open” ruling – meaning further police investigations could be carried out into her death, the Irish Mirror reports.
Judge Azizul Azmi Adnan told the court: “I am of the view that the verdict of misadventure ought to be vacated, in the interests of justice and substituted with an open verdict, as there was no credible evidence to support any other verdict.”
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Image:
Roland Leon Sunday Mirror)
The body of 15-year-old Nora was found in August 2019, nine days after she disappeared from a resort outside Kuala Lumpur.
While police insisted that there was no foul play involved, Nora’s family said she was likely kidnapped.
Earlier this year, coroner Maimoonah Aid said there is no sign that the teen was killed by homicide or suicide.
But Nora’s parents, who are based in London, dismissed claims that their daughter had wandered off into the jungle in the middle of the night.
Nora had a condition called holoprosencephaly, where the brain does not develop normally. She had limited verbal communication and could write only a few words.
This, her parents say, means she would never have left their chalet by herself in the middle of the night.
Nora was wearing only underwear when she went missing, but was naked when her body was discovered on a palm oil estate almost two miles from the resort.
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Image:
AFP via Getty Images)
This led to questions about the possibility that Nora may have been sexual assaulted.
But while the coroner noted the family’s contention, she said an extensive autopsy found no such proof and did not find evidence of struggle marks.
Ms Aid added that Nora most likely left the resort “on her own and subsequently got lost in the abandoned palm oil plantation”.
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Image:
AFP via Getty Images)
During the inquest, Nora’s mum Meabh, from Belfast, said police were slow to launch a full-scale search and accused them of failing to take seriously her concerns about potential criminal involvement.
Police have continued to stick to their version of events – believing that Nora climbed out of a window and wandered off. They do not believe foul play was involved.
Dad Sebastien also said he heard mysterious “muffled noises” coming from the chalet the night of the schoolgirl’s disappearance.
