Story By: Alex Cope, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News

This four-year-old boy has tragically died after a kite string lined with powdered glass hit his chest as he was riding his bike and he then suffered cardiac arrest.

The tragic accident occurred as Lucas Vinicius de Souza Silva was cycling on his bike which was a birthday present in the Cidade Tiradentes area of the city of Sao Paulo in the south-eastern Brazilian state of the same name.

Local media report the kite was a ‘fighter kite’ in which the string is coated with powdered glass used to cut the opponent’s string in a game popular in Brazil.

The string reportedly hit the youngster in the chest, cutting him. Family members rushed to help him and he was taken to the Cidade Tiradentes Municipal Hospital where doctors discovered he had suffered a cardiac arrest.

The four-year-old died shortly after arriving at the hospital.

Lucas’ aunt Monica de Souza Muniz said: “Lucas was a beautiful child who loved riding his bike, a boy who was loved by all and his smile and joy charmed everyone.

“He was the baby of the household and was the pride and joy of his father who never left him alone for a minute. He was so great to be honest, a healthy child who was never ill, never needed to go to the hospital.

“It is unfortunate that all we have left are the memories of a kind boy who just wanted to play and gave us joy every morning with his beautiful smile. He descended like an angel, fulfilled his trajectory here and departed back to his home that was never here.”

The victim’s body has been sent to the Legal Medicine Institute for an autopsy and the case has been registered as a suspicious death with the local police. An investigation is ongoing.

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