Cyprus attorney general rejects bid to drop case of UK boy’s fatal fall

Paphos, Cyprus (AP) — A British man charged with negligence for his 3-year-old son’s fatal fall from a hotel window in Cyprus expressed disappointment on Thursday that the attorney general rejected his request to drop the case on humanitarian grounds. The 37-year-old defendant appeared in court alongside his parents and his lawyer, Alexandros Alexandrou, who informed the media of the attorney general's decision.

The case, which centers around the boy's fall from the fourth-floor window of a hotel in Paphos, remains a matter of public interest for prosecutors. The defendant was due to plead guilty to a single charge of causing death due to negligent and careless actions, but Judge Froso Christodoulides granted the request to delay the proceedings until Tuesday.

Alexandrou stated that his client was surprised by the decision not to dismiss the case, as prosecutors acknowledged the defendant's grief but insisted on proceeding with the proceedings. The circumstances surrounding the fall are unclear, but the case was initially halted last month to allow the defendant to attend his son’s funeral and reunite with his family in the U.K. The maximum potential sentence for the defendant is four years, with a possible fine.

If convicted, he must serve a minimum of three years in prison, which could be served in a U.K. prison.