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Acid attack trial hears child screamed 'I hurt'

A three-year-old boy who was burned in an acid attack allegedly plotted by his father screamed "I hurt" over and over again after being struck, a court has heard.

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Worcester acid attack

The youngster, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, suffered serious burns to his face and arm at the Home Bargains store in Worcester on July 21 last year, during a parental custody dispute triggered by his father.

The 40-year-old father is charged with conspiring to unlawfully or maliciously cast or throw sulphuric acid on or at the boy between June 1 and July 22, with intent to burn, maim, disfigure or disable the minor, or do grievous bodily harm to him.

Several other people, including a man from Wolverhampton, face the same charge.

The Crown alleged the father, stung by his wife walking out on him and taking the children in April 2016, "enlisted others" to attack the youngster in a bid to win more contact with the child.

Prosecutor Jonathan Rees QC, opening the case, said: "We say the evidence suggests that, in an effort to ensure his application was successful, he was willing to manufacture evidence of injuries to his children in an attempt to show that his wife was unable properly to care for them - in other words she was an unfit mother."

Facing the same charge are Jabar Paktia, 42, of Newhampton Road, Wolverhampton; Adam Cech, 27, of Farnham Road, Birmingham; Jan Dudi, 25, of Cranbrook Road, Birmingham; Norbert Pulko, 22, of Sutherland Road, London; Martina Badiova, 22, of Newcombe Road, Handsworth, Birmingham; and Saied Hussini, 42, of Wrottesley Road, London. They all deny the allegation.

Continuing his opening on today, Mr Rees told Worcester Crown Court the incident was caught on Home Bargains' CCTV, before showing the footage to jurors. The mother of the boy had driven to the store with her children at about 2pm to buy a party gift.

Roadside CCTV established she was followed by a Vauxhall Vectra, allegedly containing Cech, Dudi and Pulko.

At 2.13pm she and the children went inside the store, followed shortly after by the three men, with shop CCTV showing Cech approaching the victim who is standing with his brother. Both youngsters are gazing at a brightly coloured display of plastic footballs at the end of an aisle.

The victim can be seen pointing up at the footballs, with his sibling doing practice kicks, as a man in a white T-shirt, identified without dispute in court as Cech, walks past the victim with his arm extended and an object in his hand.

As Cech exits the frame, the victim can be seen looking quickly back towards him before running to his mother nearby.

Mr Rees told jurors: "What you have just seen is that person in a white T-shirt - you can just catch the moment where the arm is extended.

"That really is the hub of this case. That is the acid attack. It is over in a split second.

"You have, in shot, Mr Cech - there's no dispute of that - extending his arm, out towards the child."

The boy can then be seen in distress, being comforted by his mother and siblings.

Mr Rees said: "His mother was a short distance away as the attack is carried out, and the sister heard the victim scream out, 'I hurt, I hurt, I hurt'."

The boy suffered a 10cm burn to his left forearm, and a 3cm burn on his forehead, which needed specialist hospital treatment.

The youngster has since made "a good recovery", Mr Rees added.

The trial, estimated to last six weeks, continues.

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