In Kharkiv, a 4-year-old boy died after falling from a window – the head of the children's services is suspected of official negligence
In Kharkiv, prosecutors have notified the head of the district children's services of suspicion of official negligence that caused a person's death (Part 3, Article 367 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). This was reported by the Office of the Prosecutor General.
According to the investigation, the official for a long time did not properly respond to reports about threats to the life and health of a 4-year-old boy, who in May 2026 fell from the window of an apartment on the fourth floor and died from the injuries sustained.
Earlier in this criminal case, the child's mother was already suspected.
The investigation established that the family had been under the supervision of social services since June 2023. At that time, the boy was taken from his mother near a landfill, where she and her partner were collecting cardboard. The child had a hematoma on his head and an inguinal hernia.
Despite this, as well as the lack of a stable income in the family and the mother's inability to provide proper care, a month later the official initiated the return of the child to the mother. At the same time, according to the investigation, she did not inform the commission about the bodily injuries and did not ensure the establishment of the causes of their occurrence.
Subsequently, new signals about danger were received by the service. Medical workers reported the need for urgent operational intervention for the child, social workers recorded inadequate care, failure to follow medical recommendations, lack of vaccinations and food in the home. It was also noted that the mother stopped contact with social services.
Despite this, the official did not initiate the immediate removal of the child from the dangerous environment and did not take other protective measures. Later, she practically stopped monitoring the implementation of the individual social protection plan, and since the beginning of 2024 limited herself to formal inquiries to the police, losing real contact with the family.
Due to such inaction, the service did not have up-to-date information about the living conditions of the children in the family. In particular, the official was not informed about the birth of another child, who could also have been in danger.
The investigation believes that with proper performance of official duties and timely removal of the child from dangerous conditions, the death could have been avoided.
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