Forensic pathologist testifies about injuries suffered by 13-year-old murder victim

Warning: This story contains graphic details some readers may find upsetting.

The forensic pathologist who performed the autopsy on a 13-year-old girl found dead in Burnaby’s Central Park in July 2017 testified in the first-degree murder trial of Ibrahim Ali on Monday.

Dr. Jason Morin told the jury he began by examining the victim's clothing.

“The underwear was abnormally positioned on the body. The left leg wasn’t in the underwear at all, so only the right leg was through the hole in the underwear, and the underwear was positioned upside down,” he said.

After removing her clothing, Morin said he saw tears, lacerations and contusions on the victim’s genitalia, and found sperm inside her body.

In its opening statement, the prosecution said it will prove Ali dragged the girl off a walking trail into the woods and strangled her during a sexual assault. Crown told the jury it will introduce DNA evidence linking Ali to the crime.

While examining the body, Morin described finding evidence of an injury common in strangulation cases.

“They’re called petechial hemorrhages, which is a fancy medical term for a small pinpoint hemorrhage. So, that was on skin of the face, underneath the chin as well as in the eyes,” he said.

The forensic pathologist was asked if he had determined a cause of death during the autopsy. He said the victim died of strangulation, adding “there had been some sort of compression on the neck.”

Last week, a neuropathologist who examined the victim’s brain testified it had markers of being without blood and/or oxygen for up to 10 minutes.

The name of the teen victim cannot be reported because of a publication ban. Ali has pleaded not guilty to killing her.