Ajman: A couple in Ajman have been charged with neglect after their five-year-old son fell to his death from the balcony of their ninth-floor flat in Greek Towers in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
“It is the responsibility of the family,” Colonel Ali Saeed Al Matroushi, Director-General of Police Operations, told Gulf News.
According to police, the boy’s parents had gone to hospital as the boy’s little sister had fallen sick, leaving their five-year-old son alone in their high-rise when the accident happened.
“They expected that their son would remain asleep. Their negligence cost them the life of their lovely son,” he said.
Col Al Matroushi said the general principles of law stipulate that parents are responsible for their children’s welfare and safety, and they are expected to make all efforts necessary to protect their children.
Parents can be prosecuted when evidence proves they neglected their children or left them unattended. Endangering the life of a child under 15 can come with a penalty of one month to two years imprisonment. The penalty increases to three years if the child is left unattended.
Col Al Matroushi said the Egyptian child, identified as Y.M.K., died after he slipped and fell from the chair he had climbed on, which was on the balcony.
He appealed to parents to ensure that their children are supervised at all times.
According to medical records at Khalifa Hospital in Ajman, at least two cases of child death or injury due to negligence have been reported this week.
Another incident occurred when a two-year-old fell from the first-floor balcony of his family’s flat in Ajman. The toddler survived but is in serious condition in Khalifa Hospital.
The toddler managed to squeeze between the metal bars of the balcony and fell to the ground, Col Al Matroushi said.
