British father banned from leaving Cyprus amid court case after son, two, dies in hotel window fall

A British father has been banned from leaving Cyprus amid court proceedings over the death of his two-year-old son, who fell from a fourth-floor hotel window.

The 37-year-old faces prosecution for "causing death by a rash, reckless, or dangerous act".

His son fell roughly 10 metres from a window at the King Evelthon Beach Hotel and Resort in Chlorakas, near Paphos, on Sunday 12 July.

The child was declared dead upon reaching hospital.

The father was arrested hours after the incident and appeared before Paphos district court on Tuesday, where Cyprus's Attorney General George Savvides confirmed the prosecution would go ahead.

The British family were on the first day of their holiday when tragedy struck at their five-star hotel at around 6.40pm.

Police said the boy had been playing with his father in a corridor beside their room as they waited for the lift to go to dinner.

The child slipped from his father's grasp and fell through an open window directly in front of them.

Within hours of the fall, at around 10pm, the father was taken into custody at the local police station and was told he was being arrested on suspicion of negligence.

He was remanded for eight days after a court hearing the following morning.

At his court appearance on Tuesday, the father sat in the dock visibly emotional, accompanied by his parents.

He was granted bail of €20,000 (£17,000) and ordered to hand over all travel documents.

He must report weekly to Paphos Central Police Station and is forbidden from crossing into Turkish-occupied areas of Cyprus.

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Investigators found a trace of alcohol in his blood, consistent with one or two drinks, which may be raised at trial.

His lawyer Petros Stavrou had repeatedly sought his release during the eight-day remand, writing to assistant police chief Marios Agiotis: "The tragedy that has befallen our client is such that any further detention will only aggravate his already severe psychological condition, as well as that of his family."

Mr Stavrou added: "In particular his overriding concern is to be released so he may be with his wife to inform their five-year-old daughter of the death of their two-year-old son, to whom they have so far only told that her brother is in hospital."

The delay meant the father had to break the news to his daughter over FaceTime.

Friends of the family described his son as "a truly special, easy-going little boy who brought so much joy to everyone around him".

"He was deeply adored, and his infectious smile, warm cuddles and kind heart are already so deeply missed and always will be," one said.

The arrest has drawn criticism both in Britain and Cyprus.

Christos Triantafyllides, a prominent Cypriot criminal lawyer, said he had "never seen anything like this" in 46 years of practice, calling the continued remand a "major mistake".

"From the moment this is not a homicide investigation, there are only two possible scenarios, negligence or an accident," he said.

"What could this man possibly do if he were released? People are detained only where there is a risk of absconding, a risk of repeating the offence, or in cases such as murder. None of those reasons applies here," he said.

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