Extent of six-year-old’s injuries revealed in court as teenager, 17, is remanded in custody

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

A six-year-old boy allegedly thrown from the viewing platform at Tate Modern suffered a bleed to the brain along with fractures to his spine, legs and arms, a court has heard.

The extent of his injuries were revealed during a short hearing at Bromley youth court in south-east London, at which his alleged attacker, a 17-year-old boy who cannot be named because he is a minor, was remanded in custody.

The six-year-old, a French national visiting London with his family, was on the platform with his parents when the incident occurred on Sunday. He fell approximately 30 metres (100ft) from the 10th floor of the art gallery’s Blavatnik extension.

He was found on a fifth-floor roof and treated at the scene before being airlifted to hospital by the London air ambulance.

He remains in a stable but critical condition and is with his family.

Police were called to the gallery at 2.40pm on Sunday. The London ambulance service also attended.

A journalist, Olga Malchevska, was on the viewing platform with her four-year-old son at the time of the incident and described what happened as “absolutely terrifying”. She said she could hear a woman crying desperately and shouting: “My son, oh my son.”

The platform has remained closed since the incident. A spokeswoman for the Tate could not confirm when it would reopen. The rest of the gallery reopened on Monday.

Tate Modern was the UK’s most popular tourist attraction in 2018, when it was visited 5.9m times, according to the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions.

The six-year-old’s alleged assailant, unshaven and wearing a grey tracksuit top and bottoms, spoke in court to confirm his name, date of birth, age and address. He also confirmed his nationality as British.

Magistrate David Armitage told him he would be remanded in custody until Thursday, when he would appear at the Old Bailey in central London.

A preparation hearing has been scheduled for 22 August at the Old Bailey. Police continue to appeal for witnesses to come forward.