Schoolboy alleges bullying and death threats in hospital
The schoolboy spent two weeks in the hospital and tearfully begged his parents to take him home.
13-year-old Bogdan from Chesma told his parents about bullying in the children«s hospital department in Magnitogorsk. According to him, three older boys from the neighboring ward threatened him with violence, took his food, beat him, and extorted money. Fearing for his life, the boy hysterically called his mother and asked her to urgently take him home.
“I had no way to escape”
The schoolboy was hospitalized in the third pediatric department of the «Center for Mother and Child Health» in Magnitogorsk on December 2 with complaints of back pain and fever. His main diagnosis is related to serious spinal problems, and there are accompanying illnesses. Previously, Bogdan had been in the Magnitogorsk hospital and no problems arose, so his family sent him for necessary treatment with peace of mind.
His mother Yulia describes her son as a skinny, modest, and friendly boy who respects his elders. She never thought these qualities could turn against him in a children«s hospital.
According to Bogdan, three teenagers from the neighboring ward started bullying him a couple of days after hospitalization. The schoolboy«s family provided the MGORSK.RU editorial office with an explanatory statement that their son gave to the police. Here»s how he described the bullies:
“They called each other by nicknames: Whip, Pervert, Cannibal. They tore my T-shirt. Three times they demanded money from me. But I had no money.”
The teenagers didn«t stop there, as follows from the schoolboy»s text.
“We were locked down for quarantine and they started feeding us in the wards. They began taking my food away. They left me no food at all. I ate the food that my parents brought me. I hid this food under the mattress. Then I came up with a plan to go to the cafeteria and finish the food left in the pots, no one noticed me,” Bogdan said.
All this was accompanied by threats, the schoolboy asserts.
“For 7-8 days in a row, they threatened me with a medical scalpel that the guys took from the treatment room. They demanded either money or food. The threat was accompanied by the words: ‘I«ll kill you, I»ll kill your family,’ it says in the explanatory statement. They brought the scalpel to my shoulder. I had no way to escape, as some of the guys blocked the exit from the ward. I was really afraid for my life. I cried, my hands were shaking. I thought they really could kill me.”
This drawing the boy gave to the police officer. According to Bogdan«s version, he was threatened with such a scalpel.
“They said the children were playing”
Bogdan explained why he didn«t immediately seek help from his parents and medical staff:
“The guys were near me and listened to what I was talking about with my parents. They forbade me to tell everything that was happening in the ward, threatening to slit my throat.”
Bogdan«s mother couldn»t visit him due to quarantine, but constantly called him and the nurses in the department.
“They [the nurses] said that the children were playing. And they [the teenagers] kept my son under control. He answered us like a robot on the phone,” Yulia replied.
This continued until December 17, when Bogdan recorded the bullying on a voice recorder. The teenagers in retaliation took the phone and deleted the recording, as the schoolboy later told the police officer:
“Whip hit me with his fist in the area of my left shoulder. At that moment, a nurse entered the ward and chased the guys back to their ward.”
After that, Bogdan called his relatives from the bathroom in tears and began begging them to take him away.
“He was crying, his voice was trembling. He told his father that if we didn«t take him, they would kill him tomorrow. They told him he wouldn»t live until morning. I drove 140 kilometers in a blizzard! My son immediately said it was these three (pointed at the teenagers. — Ed.). I went in, wanted to look them in the eyes. And they just smirked,” Yulia said.
Did they really bully the young patient and he couldn«t stand up for himself? Investigators are looking into this.
Yulia explained to the correspondent that her son«s possible bullies are much older and bigger, looking like adults. Bogdan»s family intends to seek punishment for them if the facts of bullying are proven.
Bogdan, according to his mother, now needs qualified psychological help. In addition to documents, Yulia provided the editorial office with an audio recording of a conversation with her son. On it, recalling the hospital, the boy falls into hysterics and cries. The family was not provided with a psychologist; support for the boy was offered by his former teacher from Chesma with a psychological education.
What they say in the hospital
The head nurse of the department, Natalya Agapova, answered the MGORSK.RU correspondent that law enforcement officers are working in the hospital.
“The police are now in our department. I have no time, I«m working with the police. There is no such information yet for me to give it to you.”
The teenagers that Bogdan complained about have been discharged, according to Natalya Agapova.
The city police confirmed that their officers are dealing with what happened, but for comment, they advised contacting the Investigative Committee.
“Investigators from the Pravoberezhny Interdistrict Investigative Department are establishing the circumstances of what happened. Based on the results, a procedural decision will be made,” commented the Investigative Committee.
According to our information, medical staff and participants in the conflict have been interviewed.
We have sent a request to the regional Ministry of Health and will publish the response immediately after receiving it.
During the preparation of this material, Bogdan was hospitalized in the Chesma hospital. As the boy«s mother explained to MGORSK.RU, doctors came to the family»s home and explained that it is necessary to continue treatment.
