18/02/2008

Possible 'Release' For Hotel Plunge Dad

A man who killed his young son in a plunge from a hotel balcony while on holiday in Crete could return to Britain soon, according to reports.

John Hogan, 33, from Bristol, threw his six-year-old son Liam from the fourth-floor balcony of their hotel room in Crete last year, before jumping himself with his two-year-old daughter Mia, who like him, also survived the fall.

Last month, a court in Crete cleared Mr Hogan of murder, ruling that he had been "incapable" of murdering his son, because of his mental state.

Speaking after the verdict was delivered, Mr Hogan's ex-wife Natasha, 35, said that what he had done was "unforgivable" and said that her son had "lost his life for nothing".

However, according to reports, the Hospital of Attica, near Athens, has said that Mr Hogan has shown "signs of recovery" and could soon be returned to Britain for further treatment.

However, psychiatrist Ioannis Nestoros, who appeared at Mr Hogan's trial, told Sky News that he thought the hospital's statement was "very optimistic".

(KMcA)


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30 August 2006
Hotel plunge man appears in court
A man who fell from a hotel balcony with his two children has appeared in a Greek court charged with the murder of his son. John Hogan, 32, was also charged with the attempted murder of his daughter and attempted suicide.
29 August 2006
Funeral held for hotel death plunge boy
The funeral of a six-year-old boy who died in a fall from a hotel balcony with his father in Crete has been held in Bristol. Liam Hogan's funeral was held at Holy Trinity Church in Bradley Stoke, near to the Hogan family home.
22 August 2006
Inquest into boy's hotel fall death opens
An UK inquest into the death of a six-year-old boy who died after falling 50 feet from a hotel balcony with his father and sister has been opened and adjourned.
21 January 2008
Tragic Balcony Fall Recalled In Cretan Court
The Bristol man accused of killing his own son in a tragic fall from a hotel balcony in Crete has denied the charge. John Hogan is accused of murdering Liam, six, by leaping 50ft (15m) with him and his sister from the fourth floor of a hotel in 2006. The 33-year-old's daughter Mia survived the fall.
27 March 2008
Hotel Balcony Plunge Boy 'Unlawfully Killed'
A six-year-old boy who died in a fall from a hotel balcony in Crete was unlawfully killed, an inquest has ruled. Liam Hogan, from Bristol, died from severe head injuries after falling from the balcony of the room at the Petra Mare Hotel in Ierapetra in August 2006, along with his father, John, and two-year-old sister Mia.