Dr Janefer Voo told the Kota Kinabalu coroner’s court that Zara was unconscious when she was brought to the hospital’s emergency department at 4.38am on July 16, Berita Harian reported.

Voo said the injuries suffered by Zara, who was found unconscious in a drain near her school’s hostel in Papar, included swelling and bleeding at the back of her head, a closed fracture of the left wrist, an open fracture of the left ankle, and a closed fracture of the right ankle.

After preliminary checks, a trauma alert was issued at 4.42am for the Form 1 student’s immediate referral to a neurosurgery, orthopedics, surgery and anaesthesiology team.

“Based on my evaluation, the patient was believed to have suffered serious brain trauma, injuries to the back of her head, fractures on both ankles as well as her left wrist, and internal bleeding.

“Because the patient’s blood pressure was very low, she was believed to have suffered from internal injuries from high-impact trauma to the body, which caused internal bleeding,” said the doctor.

An imaging process found that Zara had internal bleeding in the brain, confirming the fractures and revealing more fractures on her spine. It also found that she had blood clots around her pelvic area.

Zara, 13, died on July 17 at Queen Elizabeth Hospital where she was admitted a day earlier.

The Attorney-General’s Chambers ordered that her remains be exhumed for a post-mortem on Aug 8 before announcing a formal inquest on Aug 13.

The inquest before coroner Amir Shah Amir Hassan continues.