5-year-old boy identified as victim in fatal fall from Edmonton rooftop

Edmonton police say the child who died after falling from a rooftop last week was a five-year-old boy.

The Edmonton Police Service says it’s still piecing together what led to the boy falling from the rooftop at 121 Street and 101 Avenue on Wednesday around 8:30 p.m.

“The focus of the investigation is to understand the events that led up to the tragedy,” police said in Monday’s brief update.

Authorities have not revealed if the boy’s death was an accident, or if foul play is suspected.

The investigation is ongoing.

A representative for the ownership of this apartment complex claims the child fell from an upper floor, saying in a statement to CityNews, “We are fully cooperating with local authorities as they investigate the circumstances surrounding this heartbreaking event. At this stage, we have no indication to believe that the incident was caused by any structural issue or defect with the building.”

Hazelview Properties says they’re offering free counselling services to all tenants of this building. 

Residents at this apartment building west of downtown Edmonton are still processing the tragic loss.

CityNews spoke to one of the tenants, and she said it’s been difficult thinking about how something like this could’ve happened in the place she calls home.

“That’s such a terrible thing to happen in our building for the residents, but also for the family itself, because you never want to go through that or any loss in your family but just to have that kid if the situation happens is terrible and my heart goes out to the family,” said Ejenica.

The incident is a frequent topic of discussion at the pizza shop connected to the apartment complex. The manager says customers he’s spoken to are disturbed by the child’s death.

“Everybody wants to know what happened, and I can’t tell them very much, but everyone is very sad about it,” said Aashis.

The family is being supported by the Ethiopian Canadian Community Association, holding private memorials on Monday and Tuesday afternoons.