Photo: GoFundMe
Landen Hoffman,the five-year-old boy who was thrown from a third-floor balcony at the Mall of America, is back home following his release from the hospital after nearly five months of medical treatment.
An update posted Tuesday tothe GoFundMe campaignlaunched for Landen’s family — which has raised over $1 million — revealed the boy, who endured multiple surgeries, had “completed his inpatient rehabilitation and is now home.”
“We are so thankful, and we rejoice in the Lord’s blessings to our family,” reads the update. “We continue to ask that His healing powers guide us and our son’s care team as we enter the next phase of recovery, which includes continued outpatient rehabilitation for multiple injuries and adjusting to life back at home and school.”
Emmanuel Deshawn Aranda.Bloomington Police Department
Aranda was charged with attempted premeditated first-degree murder after the April 12 attack.
He pleaded guilty in May and was sentenced to 19 years in prison.
Aranda told police he had first considered choosing to kill an adult at the mall the day before the incident “because they usually stand near the balcony,” but that did not “work out,” the criminal complaint states.
On April 12,Aranda returned to the mall, where he approached the victim and the victim’s mother as they stood outside the Rainforest Café on the third floor with another parent and child.
When the victim’s mother saw Aranda, whom she had never seen before, approaching, she reportedly asked if they should move out of his way.
Then, Aranda, “without warning,” picked up the boy and threw him over the railing to the first floor.
Landen fell about 40 feetto the ground below.
After the incident,Landen continued to make great strides in his recovery, which doctors stopped short of calling miraculous.
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“Thank you to all of you who prayed for us and loved us during the past 4 ½ months,” the GoFundMe update continues. “You helped to give us hope and show us the Glory of God’s great love here on earth even during the darkest of days.”
The post concludes: “We know there is great interest in our son and our story. We respectfully ask that you allow us time and continued privacy during this great transition.”
source: people.com
