A five-year-old died after suffering a “catastrophic brain injury” when a large mirror fell on him in a Fenwick department store, an inquest has heard.
Police said Freddie Farrow appeared to touch the mirror while looking at his own reflection and seemed to use “very little force” before it fell.
The incident happened on 27 July 2021 in Colchester, Essex, and a hearing today was told the mirror weighed between 60 and 80kg and was 2.6m (8ft 6in) high.
Detective Chief Inspector Michael Pannell said police believed it “must have been very near or on its balance point”.
Freddie was unconscious after the incident and was taken to Colchester Hospital. He was later transferred to Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge but died on 2 August.
Mr Pannell told the inquest his colleague, Detective Inspector Fred Tomkins, who couldn’t attend the hearing, had seen a metal bracket on the wall and one on the mirror – with a wooden part of the bracket in pieces.
Reading from Mr Tomkins’ report, Mr Pannell said: “It was my view that this part of the bracket between the two metal brackets had effectively come apart, leaving it freestanding and leaning against the wall.”
CCTV recorded the moment Freddie was hit by the mirror after entering the lingerie section with his mum and her friend.
“Freddie appears to touch the mirror, looking at his own reflection,” said Mr Pannell. “The mirror appears to shimmer before moving forwards.”
The inquest heard Mr Tomkins’ report stated “very little force was used by Freddie” and he believed the “mirror must have been very near or on its balance point”.
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Senior coroner Lincoln Brookes told the hearing in Chelmsford that the “distressing” CCTV wouldn’t be played to jurors, but that a “large mirror attached to a column fell over on top of him, causing very serious head injuries”.
The inquest was told Freddie suffered a “catastrophic brain injury”.
His mother, Natasha Ingham, told the hearing he was “cheeky and funny and clever”.
“He was always smiling which was like a ray of sunshine,” she said.
Freddie’s father, Andrew Farrow, said in a statement read on his behalf that it “feels like part of our world is missing”.
The inquest, estimated to last four to five days, continues.
