Appalling footage shows the moment a male tourist suddenly picks up and hurls a helpless 18-month-old boy head first on the ground in the arrivals hall of a Moscow airport.
The boy is now fighting for his life in a coma with serious skull fractures and spinal injuries.
The child had arrived in Russia after he and his mother fled the bombing in Iran, say reports.
The tourist – identified as Vladimir Vitkov, 31, from Belarus – is seen on security footage looking closely at the boy who is next to his suitcase.
The attacker – described as a ‘monster’ by a Russian official – apparently checks to see if anyone is watching and then suddenly grabs the child, throwing him hard on the floor in the arrivals section of Sheremetyevo airport.
A man came running to scoop up the gravely wounded boy.
The attack happened as the boy’s pregnant mother was collecting his pushchair after their flight’s arrival.
Police are examining if there was a racist or other motivation for the act against the child.
His family had fled Iran via a tortuous route through Afghanistan and had just arrived in Russia, said reports.
The suspect had reportedly flown to Moscow from Cyprus or Egypt.
He was rapidly taken into custody after the incident, amid suspicions he was under the influence of drugs.
Moscow Region Children’s Ombudswoman Ksenia Mishonova said: ‘A drug-addled monster grabbed a toddler in the arrivals hall and threw him on the floor with all his might. All this is incredibly difficult to bear.
‘I hope the detained monster will receive the full severity of the law. I wish the child a speedy recovery. May the parents have the strength to survive this.’
Traces of cannabis were found in the suspect’s blood, according to reports citing the Russian Investigative Committee.
Other reports say drugs were found in his possession.
He was described as incapable of explaining his actions.
He was asked by officers if he had been in trouble with the police before and replied: ‘I made mistakes like that.’
Vitkov has a daughter the same age as the boy thrown to the ground, said reports.
A female friend was ‘in shock’ from his alleged actions.
The suspect is under investigation for attempted murder.
The committee said: ‘A man, while in the airport arrivals area in a state of drug intoxication, grabbed a child and, lifting him, threw him to the floor with considerable force.
‘The boy was hospitalised in a medical facility for assistance.
‘The man’s criminal actions were stopped by eyewitnesses of the incident.’
The incident occurred shortly before midnight in the departure lounge yesterday.
Sheremetyevo International Airport is the busiest in Russia, handling more than 40 million passengers and over 300,000 aircraft per year.
