B.C. teen sustained head injuries before death, pathologist tells murder trial

A forensic pathologist testifying in the trial of a man accused of murdering a 13-year-old girl in Burnaby told the B.C. Supreme Court on Tuesday that the victim sustained “blunt force” scalp and head injuries before she died.

“They could have happened immediately before death or up to several hours before death,” Dr. Jason Morin said.

The body of the girl, who cannot be identified under the terms of a publication ban, was found in Burnaby’s Central Park in July 2017, just hours after her mother had reported her missing.

Ibrahim Ali last month pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the trial.

Morin, who conducted the autopsy, said the girl died after being strangled, which caused the bursting of blood vessels from under her chin to the top of her face, and in her eyes.