I did not search nearby garden where his body was found, says Zayn Rayyan's mother

The Star

23-07-2025

PETALING JAYA: The mother of the Zayn Rayyan Abdul Matin admitted in the Sessions Court here today that she did not search the garden area near her apartment in Block R, Idaman Apartment, Damansara Damai, when her son with autism, went missing on Dec 5, 2023.
Instead, Ismanira Abdul Manaf, 30, said she searched around the apartment complex and nearby premises.
"I searched every floor in Block R, then continued to Block S and Block A. All the apartment blocks have four levels. I searched alone at first while staying in contact with my husband (Zaim Ikhwan Zahari), who was then on his way home from work.
"He told me he was almost at Idaman Apartment and asked me to wait in front of Block E. When he arrived, we continued the search together,' she said during cross-examination by deputy public prosecutor Raja Zaizul Faridah Raja Zaharudin on the third day of her defence trial.
Ismanira said she and her husband also looked for Zayn Rayyan at several places within a 500-metre radius from their home, including a petrol station, fast food outlets, her workplace, his school, Indah Apartment, Harmoni Apartment and Prima Damansara.
Ismanira agreed with the prosecution's suggestion that all the locations she searched were farther away than the garden next to Block R.
The first defence witness, however, disagreed with the prosecution's suggestion that she had encountered several people while searching the apartment blocks.
"Perhaps a few, but not many. It was during working hours, so the area was quiet except for the shop section. I only met people when I stopped at Block A, where there were stalls. My husband and I left our contact numbers at each shop we visited,' she said.
When questioned by defence counsel Haresh Mahadevan about her decision to search areas 500 metres away instead of the nearby garden, Ismanira said, "I know my son. He is on the autism spectrum, and he only goes to places he is familiar with.
"I never brought Zayn to the garden or to the location where his body was found. Unless something unusual had happened or someone took him there, he wouldn't have gone there on his own,' she said.
On Monday, Judge Dr Syahliza Warnoh ruled that the prosecution had established a prima facie case and ordered Ismanira to enter her defence. Her husband, Zaim Ikhwan, 30, was discharged and acquitted of the same charge.
The couple had been accused of neglecting Zayn Rayyan in a manner likely to cause him physical harm between noon on Dec 5 and 9.55pm on Dec 6, 2023, in the vicinity of Block R of Idaman Apartment and the nearby river.
They were charged under Section 31(1)(a) of the Child Act 2001, read together with Section 34 of the Penal Code. If convicted, the offence carries a maximum sentence of 20 years' imprisonment, a fine of up to RM50,000, or both.
The trial continues this afternoon. - Bernama