Anna Jenkins inquest: There are attempts to discredit her, says Aussie MP

 

An Australian lawmaker has expressed concern about alleged attempts to smear Anna Jenkins’ name during an ongoing inquest being held concerning the Australian grandmother’s disappearance in Penang five years ago.

Frank Pangallo, a member of the South Australian Legislative Council, said there were also attempts to question her relationship with her husband Frank Jenkins.

“I think the most significant allegation was linking Anna to some kind of drug crimes back in Australia and also that the police were interested in talking to her.

“The family lawyer who contacted the South Australian police was able to get a statement that totally discredited that line of evidence and she was totally cleared of any wrongdoing and has got no criminal record in any jurisdiction in Australia,” he said.

Pangallo (above, middle) was speaking to the media after the inquest at the coroner’s court in George Town, Penang today.

The inquest is being conducted to establish Anna’s cause of death and her mysterious disappearance at Jalan Scotland, George Town, in August 2017.

“There have been attempts to smear Mrs Jenkins’ name and her relationship with her husband Frank Jenkins. At this point, of course, we haven't heard any evidence from the Jenkins family.

“And I'm sure that when that happens, that will be able to be rebutted.

“So far, I think the efforts to discredit Mrs Jenkins had so far failed.”

Pangallo thanked the Malaysian authorities, including those in Penang, as well as the coroner’s office, for conducting the inquest into Anna’s death.

He said it has been a long process for Frank Jenkins and his family to be able to get to this point.

“It looks like we still have a bit of a way to go with the inquest. But I think we are making progress in determining what happened to Anna,” he said.

Also present were the victim’s son Greg Jenkins, two officials from the Australian High Commission in Kuala Lumpur, and Jenkins family counsel Raveentharan Subramaniam, who is conducting a watching brief for the family.

‘Many things here make us scratch our heads’

Frank Jenkins said the biggest thing for the family was the emotional attachment to this case.

“It bears heavy on us and the whole process itself is frustrating. It's emotional, it makes us angry. It makes us sad, having to sit through a lot of stuff, and as we said, there are a lot of things here that make us scratch our heads.

“How can they do that, and how can we accept that as the norm here in Malaysia and any foreigner that visits his country to know that if something does happen, this is the process that you have to go through when it's harrowing to sit there and hear them come up with these determinations…

“I can't allow my lawyer to cross reference any false accusation that was brought up. So where is our procedural fairness during this?

“I urge the coroner as well to please listen to the evidence that's provided, not the loose lips, the evidence that's actually supported during this case to make that solid determination of what is right and what is wrong,” he added. - Mkini