According to a story on PEOPLE, police are investigating a “horrific incident” after a six-year-old boy from Connecticut suffered third-degree burns while playing with friends.
Now, 6-year-old Dominick Krankall’s family is speaking out about the horror their son faced after allegedly being attacked by the neighborhood bully.
The mother of the child accused by Dominick’s family of tossing a flaming soccer ball at the boy has now presented authorities with CCTV footage showing the events leading up to the boy’s injury.
The security video shows four children (ages 6 to 11) playing in the backyard, but has not been made public. The three younger children douse the ball in gasoline and kick it around the yard at one point.
The moment of the alleged attack, however, occurs just out of frame.
According to WFSB News, the Bridgeport Police Department released a statement on Friday indicating that the camera evidence available did not demonstrate any premeditated act.
“At this juncture in the investigation, Bridgeport police and fire have reviewed known video portraying portions of the actual incident,” police said in a news release provided to the outlet. “The video footage recorded four children (ages 6, 7, 8, and 11) playing together in the rear yard of the residence. At least three of the children (ages 6, 7 and 8) were observed playing with fire and gasoline. There is nothing on the video portraying any of the children deliberately injuring the other.”
Maria Rua, Dominick’s mother, described the events that followed the incident, saying that her son screamed “Mommy, please help me, they set me on fire.”
She added that “his leg was still smoking, and his face was bright red.’”
On a GoFundMe campaign that has since garnered over $600,000, Dominick’s sister Kayla Deegan claimed that Dominick had “been bullied for a time” by the other youngster, writing that it “escalated to a deadly intent.”
One donor, Rueben Miller, writes, “Our family prays that God heals and restores this little man. Stay strong Dominick, you have a lot of people praying for you!”
So far, thousands of people have rallied together to help Dominick and his family.
Under the GoFundMe post, Deegan alleged that “The kid covered a ball in gasoline, lit it on fire, and threw it at him. All in the matter of SECONDS. Dom has second and third degree burns on his face and leg. He’s going to be scarred for life mentally and physically.”
Deegan explains that even though her family has not been allowed to see the surveillance footage, they believe Dominick, citing that his story “has never changed.”
“We wish no ill will on the family of our former friends, and we apologize for the emotional way this had evolved,” Deegan continued.
Dominick was released from the hospital early last month and his family told PEOPLE that “his spirits are very high.”
Visit the GoFundMe here to support Dominick’s family.
