4:01pm Thursday 4th September 2008
By Elizabeth Pears
The child who fell from the third floor of a Tottenham tower block been named as 23-month-old Ahmed Yusuf Geesey.
Child abuse officers are investigating after the toddler fell from a third floor window of Croydon House, on Broadwater Farm estate, in Gloucester Road.
Ahmed, of Hope Street, Birmingham, plunged 33 ft and landed on the outdoor patio of a flat two floors below.
Emergency services arrived at the scene at about 5.40pm and rushed the toddler to Royal London Hospital, where he was in a critical condition, having suffered a fractured skull.
He was later transferred to Great Ormond Street Hospital, but died the following day.
A post-mortem gave the cause of death as severe head injuries.
Said Jilaou, 40, a neighbour who knows the family, said the toddler and his mother were visiting Ahmed’s grandfather, who lived in the flat.
Mr Jilaou said the mother had been seen shouting from the window, saying she did not know how to get down.
Other residents claimed the mother was not in the flat at the time of the incident, but was later seen screaming hysterically as her son, dressed only in a vest and nappy, was treated by paramedics.
Croydon House resident, Stella Santana, 37, said: “I was in the kitchen at around 5.30pm and heard a woman screaming.
“I ran outside and saw the boy lying in a man’s arms.
“He had a big bump on his head and he was bleeding behind his ear. His eyes were open and he was making a whimpering noise.
“I threw my mobile phone at the man to call an ambulance. The man was shouting, ‘the child is dying’, but none of the family came.”
She said police officers quickly arrived at the scene, but added: “It felt like a long time for me.
It was a terrible thing to have happened.”
An inquest was opened and adjourned at Hornsey Cor-oners Court, Myddleton Road, today.
Officers from SCD5 — a specialist team of child abuse investigators from Stratford — are looking into the incident.
Detective Inspector Colin Walsh said they were keeping an “open mind” but confirmed they were treating the death as suspicious.
Tragic Ahmed was due to celebrate his second birthday next Wednesday.
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