Boy injured by exploding banknote returns home, mother shares update

The mother of the boy injured by the explosion of a banknote in Krasnogorsk told MSK1.RU that he is already home with his beloved cat. The child will return to school only after the New Year, as in two weeks, the cast will be removed from only one arm; the second was more severely injured. Nine-year-old Sasha (name changed) awaits recovery and then prosthetics—free of charge, under a government program.

“The right hand cannot be restored, the doctors did everything they could. Only a prosthesis can be made there. But my son is not worried. He is a very resilient young man and just wants to return to normal life as soon as possible. It doesn’t matter, with a prosthesis or without—the main thing is to return. Perhaps he is just a child and doesn’t fully understand yet,” Galina told MSK1.RU.

Classmates supported the boy, recording a video with kind words for him. According to his mother, Sasha misses school very much and as soon as he can, he will visit his class.

As reported by the Ministry of Health of the Moscow Region, the child spent 18 days in the Roshal Children’s Center. He has completed the first stage of treatment and now awaits rehabilitation and preparation for prosthetics.

The center’s director, Tatyana Shapovalenko, said that the boy’s injury is very severe and thanked the child for his courage.

“There will be preparation for prosthetics, there will be prosthetics. That is, this is still a long stage that we have to go through together with him,” the doctor stated.

Updated. After our conversation with the family, the Moscow region children’s ombudsman Ksenia Mishonova reported that the boy was called by Vladimir Putin. The president wished Sasha a speedy recovery and happiness.

The child was supported by singer Nadezhda Babkina, who invited him to her theater. Sasha dreamed of going to the play “Quiet Don,” and the doctors allowed him to go with his mother for the evening. The child was delighted, he visited the dressing room and backstage, and spoke with Babkina.

The explosion occurred more than two weeks ago. The boy picked up a gift package with a 10-ruble banknote (approximately $0.10 at current rates) on the street, and it exploded in his hands. The president of the “Officers of Alpha Group” union, Alexei Filatov, suggested that he was injured accidentally due to a domestic conflict among adults.

Investigators initiated a criminal case for attempted murder by a generally dangerous method (Part 3, Art. 30, item “e”, Part 2, Art. 105 of the Criminal Code), but law enforcement officials have not reported any suspects. The children’s ombudsman of the Moscow Region, Ksenia Mishonova, urged parents to warn children not to pick up anything from the ground.