Police at the scene of the fall at London's Tate Modern. Photo / AP
Police at the scene of the fall at London's Tate Modern. Photo / AP
Witnesses have described the horrific moment a six-year-old boy plunged from the tenth floor viewing platform of the Tate Modern, with his mother screaming: "My son!"
Visitors to the London gallery watched in horror on Sunday as the young boy was thrown five floors to land on the roof of an adjacent building, reports news.com.au.
A 17-year-old - who allegedly threw the boy from the roof - was grabbed by members of the public who said he appeared calm and emotionless.
Olga Malehevska was on the balcony with her four-year-old child when she heard people say "oh my God, the boy dropped" and saw a woman crying, the Mail Online reports.
"I just felt like something is going on, I should take my child out of there immediately and we tried to go towards the exit'," she said.
The suspect is being held on suspicion of attempted murder and was described by onlookers as white, bearded and tall. Witnesses said he became calm and silent after the young child was thrown from the roof.
"He didn't fight back, didn't shout or anything," Ms Malehevska said. "He was just emotionless. The whole situation was terrifying. We are so shaken."
The boy remains was airlifted to hospital and remains in a critical but stable condition. His family are French nationals living in London.
Nancy Barnfield, 47, of Rochdale, was on the platform with a friend and their children when her friend heard a "loud bang" as the child landed on the fifth floor.
She claimed she had seen the teenager stalking the group through the Tate gallery, telling the Daily Mail: "He followed us around everywhere.
I told my kids to stay away from that man, it went on for ages. He looked about 19 to 21 years old, acting so weird.
He had his hands behind his back the whole time, his back to the wall, just watching people. We walked away from him then immediately when he was out of sight a woman was screaming 'My son, my son' and people were grabbing him."
The boy remains in a critical condition after being thrown from Tate Modern London Viewing Platform (pictured). Photo / Alamy
A 17-year-old male remains in police custody on suspicion of attempted murder as officers work to understand exactly what happened. On Monday, police issued a statement appealing for further witnesses.
DCI John Massey said they are providing "around the clock support to the little boy's family."
"We are grateful for the support of the public, some of whom detained the male arrested in the immediate aftermath of the incident. He was arrested by officers very quickly afterward. This was a truly shocking incident, and people will understandably be searching for answers.
"At the moment, this is being treated as an isolated event with no distinct or apparent motive. There is no link between the victim and male arrested.
"It would have been incredibly distressing to watch, and it may be that you left Tate Modern very quickly after. If you have not yet spoken to us about what you saw, please contact us without delay.
"My team is also very keen to talk to you if you witnessed a male whose behaviour seemed out of place, suspicious or worrying, in the hour or two before the incident in or near the gallery. It may be that this is something which has only just come back to you. If so, please still make that call to the investigation team."
Barnfield said members of the public grabbed the teenager who did not resist and stood calmly and quietly.
Another woman said she heard the impact and "screaming from above."
"I went inside because the screaming was horrific. The boy didn't make any noise but the people from the viewing platform were screaming. Inside, after around ten minutes we were told to leave. They tried to shut down the Tate but one door was left unguarded so we went through that door."
The Tate Modern is one of London's most popular tourist attractions with 5.9 million visitors last year.
The incident happened around 2:40pm on Sunday during the August summer holidays when it was packed with international visitors.
