Story By: Ana Lacasa, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News

A six-month-old baby girl has died after being hit in the head by a roof fan as her stepfather – who has since been arrested in connection with her death – was allegedly playing with her and throwing her into the air.

The incident took place in the city of Caucete, in the north-western Argentina province of San Juan and hospital sources report the girl, named in reports as Giuliana del Valle Sotoyan, died because of the blows she received to the head.

The accident took place on Sunday afternoon, when the stepfather of the girl, identified as Jesus Michel Zalazar, 26, allegedly threw her into the air without noticing the roof fan was on.

The fan hit the girl’s head and she was taken to the Guillermo Rawson hospital where she underwent urgent surgery. However, sources from the hospital told reporters that ““she could not get over the injuries and died in the morning”.

The stepfather has been arrested. Reports state the event happened during a family gathering and that some relatives had wanted to beat the stepfather up.

The case was at first being investigated as a negligence case, but judge Matias Parron, who is in charge of the investigation, has changed it to a homicide case.

Aldana, the aunt of the victim, explained to local media “my sister (the mother of the baby girl) was cooking and told that the meal was ready, then I started to set the table. Jesus had the baby and was playing around with her in the living room. Suddenly, I felt a blow on the roof fan and when I looked at it, Jesus had her against his chest with his shirt bloody”.

“I told him, what have you done? And we rushed out to ask for help from a neighbour to go to the hospital. He was telling me on the way to the hospital, I did nothing, Aldana, I did nothing”

The case is still under investigation.

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