A six-year-old boy has been accused of killing a premature baby after his parents let him roam free on a maternity ward.
Newborn Zayneb-Cassandra died on Tuesday after suffering a catastrophic head injury at Jeanne-de-Flandre Children’s Hospital within the northern city in Lille France.
She was allegedly dropped on the ground by the boy who ‘treated her like a doll’ on Friday.
Zayneb-Cassandra was the primary child to a 23-year-old woman, and was born via c-section seven and a half months premature.
She was left alone within the neonatal unit while the mum recovered on the maternity ward when the boy entered her room.
Other patients had already complained in regards to the child, who they said was a ‘disruptive presence’ and went into other patients’ rooms unattended.
Zayneb’s grandmother told the Voix du Nord newspaper: ‘The boy would arrive at 7am and spend all day running up and down the hallways.
‘All of the moms were complaining, and a nurse even warned the kid’s mother that there was an issue. He was entering the opposite rooms.
‘He also entered Zayneb’s room for the primary time. He said she looked like a doll, and my husband, who was there, took him out.’
The family were signing the brand new mum’s discharge papers once they received a call from the ward manager who said: ‘A bit of boy had been fidgeting with the child, who had fallen.’
Zayneb was found unresponsive on the ground next to the boy who was sitting in a chair.
She was rushed to intensive care but was declared dead on Tuesday.
An investigation has been opened by the juvenile unit of the Lille Judicial Police Service.
‘Investigations are currently underway on this case,’ said a spokesman for Lille prosecutors.
The hospital also announced the opening of ‘an internal administrative investigation’.
A spokesman said: ‘This human tragedy has deeply affected the staff and teams of Lille University Children’s Hospital, in addition to the opposite families present.’
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