A newly surfaced footage of the incident that caused 6-year-old Dominick Krankall’s second and third-degree burns last April shows the boy was not bullied or deliberately set on fire. Krankall, who claimed to have been bullied and set on fire by an older neighborhood playmate received massive support when news broke out about the said bullying incident in Connecticut. But that story has taken a different turn after the video was made public last Friday by the mother of the accused bully.
According to the New York Post, police have made confirmations that indicate there was no evidence that point to foul play. This deflects from earlier reports and claims that Krankall was bullied and set on fire by an 8-year-old playmate who lured him into a shed and threw a gasoline-doused flaming tennis ball at him while playing in the backyard.
Laura Giacobbe, the mother of the boy who was accused of being the bully released the video footage last week having been told by cops to withhold releasing the video until authorities have concluded the investigation. Bridgeport Police Department released a statement on June 10 and confirmed they found no evidence that showed the young boy was intentionally targeted by the kids nor was he bullied by Giacobbe’s children.
In the footage, the four children were playing in the backyard, including Giacobbe’s boys and Krankall. They were lighting fires and kicking a flaming soccer ball where Krankall can be seen wiping off gasoline on his pants. The young boy kicked the ball and stepped on a plastic cup filled with gasoline causing him to catch fire. He then stumbled onto the ground but nothing in the video showed he was doused with gasoline and lit on fire.
“My 11-year-old son, Lorenzo, saved him, took his bare hands, and took the fire out on his face,” Giacobbe said.
On the other hand, Krankall’s mother Maria Rua maintains that her son was bullied and insists the video footage was edited.
A heartbroken Giacobbe spoke to the media calling for authorities to arrest Krankall’s mother for making false statements and causing her family much agony and trauma to her son. Meanwhile, the Krankall family has amassed quite a substantial amount of money through their GoFundMe page. A representative from GoFundMe said the platform is backed by a guarantee which protects donors reassuring that any requests by donors for a refund will be processed accordingly.
