Family of Aussie woman who went missing in Penang wants inquest

GEORGE TOWN, Aug 14 — The family of Australian woman Annapuranee Jenkins, who disappeared while holidaying here nearly three years ago, will push for an inquest if there are signs of foul play in an ongoing police investigation.

Lawyer S. Raveentharan, who is acting for the family, said they hoped to discover the mystery behind Annapuranee’s disappearance since December 2017.

“Once police have completed investigations, if any foul play is found based on the autopsy report, then an inquest can be conducted,” he said in a press conference with Annapuranee’s son, Greg Jenkins, and Lawyers For Justice representatives Senator Yusmadi Yusoff and Jason Ong Khan Lee.

Annapuranee, then 66 years, went missing after she was dropped off by an e-hailing driver along Scotland Road on December 13, 2017.

Her husband, Frank Jenkins, who was also holidaying in Penang then, lodged a missing persons report with the police when she did not return to their hotel.

Human remains were discovered scattered around a construction site within a 2km radius of her last known location on Scotland Road here. DNA testing by police indicate the human remains to be that of Annapuranee.

Lawyer S. Raveentharan addresses reporters during a press conference in George Town August 14, 2020. — Picture by Sayuti Zainudin

Yesterday, Greg collected his mother’s belongings that were found with her remains.

He claimed there was a massive injustice in the way his mother’s missing persons case was handled by the police back in 2017.

“Nevertheless, the recent discovery of my mother’s remains has prompted the Bukit Aman forensic team to take swift and encouraging efforts,” he said.

He expressed his gratitude to local police for continuing the investigation as well as to search the construction site for the rest of his mother’s remains.

“We, the Jenkins family, shall seek justice, the truth and closure for our beloved mother,” he said.

According to Raveentharan, only a pelvic bone was found in June and the police will need to find the rest of her remains to conduct a thorough investigation into her death.

“With Bukit Aman investigating this, I hope there will be better results,” he said.