"This bully has gotten away with too much and has a history of bullying," his sister wrote.
Trigger Warning: This story mentions bullying that may be disturbing to the readers.
A 6-year-old boy from Connecticut was allegedly set on fire by his neighbor.
Dominick Krankall suffered third-degree burns to his face and other parts of the body. He is currently hospitalized and according to his family, this is the result of bullying. Dominick's sister, Kayla Deegan, said that on Sunday, her younger brother was playing in the backyard of their Bridgeport home. She then claims that an 8-year-old broke into a shed on the property, stole gasoline and lighters, and enticed Dominick to come over, per NBC New York.
She said, "What he did was pour gasoline on a tennis ball, took a lighter, lit it up and just chucked it right at my brother's face — and then ran away from him and watched him burn." Maria Rua, the boy's mother told ABC7, "I heard him screaming, 'Mommy help me, they set me on fire,' "
Dominick was brought to Bridgeport Hospital's burn unit shortly before 4 p.m. Police stated tuesday that they are looking into preliminary allegations of four unaccompanied youngsters who were spotted playing with gasoline and setting items on fire.
Aaron Krankall, the boy's father, told WFSB that they expect Dominick to be in the hospital for another week. He said, "We have people bringing us dinners to my family before I get home so they have dinner. We've had relatives and aunts, people coming over, and cousins coming over and helping out. it's just been amazing."
A 6-year-old Connecticut boy has suffered third-degree burns to his face and legs after a bully poured gasoline on a tennis ball, lit it up, threw it at the boy’s face, then “ran away... and watched him burn,” his family said. https://t.co/vu6P95Xg9w
— The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) April 28, 2022
His sister has created a GoFundMe campaign to gather funds for a new home where her brother will be safe from the bullies. She wrote in the campaign, "Dom has second and third degree burns on his face and leg. He’s going to be scarred for life mentally and physically." She added, "We are looking for help for a new home because it is not safe here. This bully has gotten away with too much and has a history of bullying. The mother thinks he is innocent. The family thinks it’s a joke."
The family of a 6-year-old boy said he was playing in the backyard of their Connecticut home when another child covered a tennis ball with gasoline, lit it on fire, and then threw it at the boy's face — leading to second- and third-degree burns. https://t.co/U5ZMCvTBWG
— NBC Los Angeles (@NBCLA) April 27, 2022
She said that Dominick cannot talk properly because of being in pain but he managed to tell his mother, "Please don’t take me back there." She also informed about Dominick's health in an update stating that he is "doing a little better." She added, "Yesterday was the first time he actually was able to get a few bites of food past his extremely swollen lips and into his mouth. He could only handle a few bites, but that is some good news."
She further wrote, "He’s such a tough little cookie. The bravest 6 year old i’ve ever known. Being an older sister and so close to your siblings, seeing my baby brother like this is absolutely heart wrenching." The family aims to raise more awareness about the ill effects of bullying.
References:
https://abc7ny.com/boy-burned-connecticut-dominick-krankall-maria-rua/11796289/
https://www.wfsb.com/2022/04/26/police-investigating-after-child-burned-bridgeport/
https://www.gofundme.com/f/justice-for-dominick-stop-bullying?qid=04e5f96dd4392669220df2d042c246aa
Cover Image Source: GoFundMe
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