It was after I was in the game. The server had reset, so Malag left the OOC area (after that visit with the Helm Guy), then she visited a few merchants in the camp to replenish her healing kits and "orcish throwing blades" (masterwork shuriken). Then she checked the bounty boards, and I decided to pick up a petty criminal in the Cave of the Bat before going after a minor criminal in the Old Tomb. Malag killed the petty criminal and took her head, then dropped off the server while heading for the exit. And that's where I started running into the error.
Apparently Malag had gotten dropped by a minor server crash, because when my new Monk checked the bounty board, none of the petty criminals were dead with bounties pending.
I'm not 100% sure, but I'm pretty sure that the problem's with Malag's upgraded gauntlets.