Parents of Nora Quoirin say there was a ‘criminal element’ in daughter’s death

The parents of a teenager found dead in a Malaysian jungle while on a family holiday say they believe there was a “criminal element” involved in the death of their daughter.

Speaking publicly for the first time since the death, Meabh and Sebastian Quoirin say they want “truth and justice” for their daughter Nora, who was found dead after a 10-day search around the Malaysian jungle resort of Dusun in August.

In the exclusive interview with Ireland’s state broadcaster RTE, Ms Quoirin said that she has many questions about her 15-year-old daughter’s death.

When Nora disappeared from her hotel room, her parents feared she had been abducted, insisting she would not have wandered off by herself.

However, police in Malaysia said they found no evidence of abduction or kidnapping.

Ms Quoirin said during Tuesday’s interview, that it would have been “impossible physically mentally to imagine that she could have got any distance at all”.

“For us something very complex happened,” she added.

“We have insisted from the beginning that we believe there was a criminal element to what happened.

“And crucially we’re struggling because it was difficult to get resources in place fast enough to investigate a criminal angle.

“While a post mortem when it comes through may give us answers, and has already given us some basic answers around what caused Nora’s death, it doesn’t explain any of how she could possibly have got to where she was found.”

A post-mortem examination revealed Nora died from internal bleeding probably caused by hunger and stress.