KUALA LUMPUR: The following is a timeline from when the body of murdered 6-year-old boy Zayn Rayyan Abdul Matiin was found until today:
Dec 5, 2023: Zayn Rayyan Abdul Mattin's mother files a police report at 6.36pm after the 6-year-old autistic boy goes missing.
She says she realised the boy went missing while climbing the stairs to their third-floor unit in Idaman Apartment in Damansara Damai after picking him up from school.
Dec 6: A massive multi-agency search is launched, including the neighbourhood watch.
At least 40 police personnel, aided by more than 60 residents, also conduct a door-to-door search covering the 2,484 units of the 18-block apartment complex. K9 sniffer dogs are also roped in.
Dec 6: A resident aiding the search finds Zayn Rayyan's remains by a stream about 200m from his residential block at about 9.30pm.
The boy is fully clothed in the school uniform he was last seen in.
Dec 7: Zayn Rayyan's remains are brought to Sungai Buloh Hospital for a post-mortem examination. The case is classified as sudden death, pending the results.
Police believe that Zayn Rayyan was killed by strangulation elsewhere before his body was dumped by the stream.
Zayn Rayyan's body is released from Sungai Buloh Hospital's Forensic Department at 5.55pm after the post-mortem examination and is later buried at the Seksyen 9 Muslim cemetery in Kota Damansara.
Dec 8: Autopsy finds signs of self-defence wounds on Zayn Rayyan's body, indicating that the cause of death was from injuries to the neck believed to be caused by strangulation.
Dec 9: Police record statements of five individuals, including his parents. The first person who discovered Zayn Rayyan's body was among the five who provided statements.
Dec 12: Police analyse dashboard camera recordings from residents to search for clues.
Dec 23: Police confirm seeking help from Interpol in the case. Evidence from the case had been sent to Interpol for investigation and to be cross-checked with Interpol database.
Jan 9: Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain says investigation into the case is 90 per cent complete. He says police are gathering intelligence to apprehend the suspect, who matched more than 50 per cent of the statements from witnesses and information they received.
Jan 29: Police say they recorded the statements of more than 200 individuals in connection with Zayn Rayyan's murder.
Feb 23: Despite a RM20,000 reward, police do not have any new leads relating to the case. The reward is from the non-governmental organisation Malaysian Crime Prevention Foundation (MCPF) Selangor, in an effort to help solve the case.
March 21: Police do not get any new leads from an internet protocol (IP) address detected at the location of Zayn Rayyan's body.
May 8: Police say Zayn Rayyan's case is still 'active' despite receiving no new leads.
May 31: Police arrest Zayn Rayyan's parents at their family home in Puncak Alam, Selangor. The couple are brought to the Petaling Jaya police headquarters for further investigation. They are arrested under section 302 of the Penal Code for murder.
June 1: Police obtain a seven-day remand order against the parents until June 7.
June 3: Police record statements from the former babysitter and two of his family members.
June 4: Zayn Rayyan's grandfather appoints new lawyer to represent Zayn's parents, who are held under remand.
June 7: Police say there are inconsistencies between the statements recorded from Zayn Rayyan's parents and other witnesses and manage to extend the remand order against the parents for six days until June 13.
Investigations included the seizure of the couple's handphones as well as the recording of statements of the boy's two family members and a former babysitter.
June 10: Police take the mother to the spot where Zayn Rayyan's body was found at 11.06am. It is believed that police had wanted the mother to reenact her actions that day. Zayn Rayyan's father was also brought to the scene, but he did not get down from the police van.
June 12: Lawyers Fahmi Abd Moin and Mahmud Jumaat object against the police's application under Section 26(1) of the Evidence Act to record a guilty plea from Zayn Rayyan's mother before a magistrate.
The boy's father was not produced in court. Zayn Rayyan's paternal grandparents are arrested at their home in Subang Bestari, after returning from the Petaling Jaya Court Complex at 2.30pm.
June 13: Zayn Rayyan's parents claim trial at the Petaling Jaya Sessions Court to a charge of neglecting the child in a manner likely to cause physical injury to him.
Petaling Jaya District Police Chief Assistant Commissioner Shahrulnizam Jaafar said the paternal grandparents were only detained for 24 hours for questioning and released at the Petaling Jaya police station.
Fahmi says the grandparents were released on police bail with condition; to report to police headquarters each month.
June 14: A Telegram group posts what it claims is a record of statements taken by police from Zayn Rayyan's parents.
Zaim's brother, Zhorif Ikmal Zahari lodges a police report after purported investigation facts regarding the murder case were distributed on social media.
June 16: The Social Welfare Department reviews potential guardians for Zayn Rayyan's younger brother, with a recommendation to be made to the court on August 9.
June 30: Petaling Jaya police launch a probe into the circulation of photos from Zayn Rayyan Abdul Matiin's case file, which were posted on a Telegram channel.
July 2: Bukit Aman's Elite Crime Investigation Unit takes over the probe into the circulation of the case file photos and also investigates the possibility of insider involvement in the circulation of the images.
July 18: The younger brother of the late Zayn Rayyan remains under the temporary care of the Selangor Welfare Department until a suitable and eligible guardian is identified.
July 26: Lawyer Mahmud Jumaat confirms he no longer representing Isma, with Fahmi taking over.
Fahmi requests the Sessions Court to amend the child's name in the charge sheet to Zayn Rayyan bin Zaim Ikhwan as the correction was made on July 4.
The defence then requests the court to impose a gag order on five TikTok users for uploading content deemed subjudice against the parents.
Judge Dr Syahliza Warnoh did not issue a gag order and directed the defence to report any subjudice content to the authorities.
The court schedules a status update on the document submission for Sept 18.