Khaled Basem Al Satouf, died after drowning in the River Swale at Richmond Falls, an inquest head – a witness thought the boy, 12, was just ‘messing around’ in the water
A young boy died after he became trapped between two rocks in a river, an inquest has heard
Khaled Basem Al Satouf, died in the River Swale at Richmond Falls after he suddenly disappeared. The boy, 12, had been “messing around” before his family were heard screaming on a pebble beach close by, according to witnesses close to the scene in North Yorkshire.
Khaled’s body was found around 12 feet below the surface of the river and was found between two rocks. His death was ruled as an accident and he died from drowning, assistant coroner for North Yorkshire Alison Norton said.
Khaled, from Leeds, was with six other members of his family during the incident on August 16, Northallerton Coroner’s Court heard. Witness Paul Norton said there were a number of people in the area having fun in the water.
He said: “There were lots of people in the water on the day in question, and there was one boy in the bottom pool having fun and splashing around. His family was on the pebble beach, and I stood and watched for two minutes – the boy seemed to be having a good time.”
He added that Khaled was in the water up to his neck, but Mr Norton was not worried for the boy. He thought young Khaled was simply having fun.
“He was in water up to his neck. I had no concerns for him. He was going under the water, and I thought he was just messing around. Two minutes later, I heard screams from further along the falls and towards the river. I turn around, and he’s no longer there.”
Further tragic testimony was delivered from a child witness, who cannot be named. She said she was in the water with Khaled when he vanished.
“I was in the water near a rock and Khaled was going to get out I thought he was joking. He was always joking,” she said. “I was him go under the water for a while and said Khaled is drowning. He was going back towards the waterfall. I saw him gong under for a while. He can swim a bit. But not in that water.”
On the day of the incident, North Yorkshire Police were scrambled at around 5pm, but despite a search , the body of Khaled was found at around 10:45pm that evening.
There were no suspicious circumstances, police concluded.
