A mum accused of dropping her three-year-old daughter 60ft to her death after dangling her over a sixth-floor balcony as punishment for crying has been held on suspicion of murder.
Anna Ruzankina, 23, reportedly held little Anastasia, by her t-shirt before the clothing ripped and sent the child hurtling towards the ground.
In horrific footage of the fall, Anastasia can be heard saying “Mama, I am scared” before repeating “I am scared… I am scared… I am scared” in her final moments.
The mum is then seen in CCTV having retrieved the dead girl and carrying her in a lift back up to the family’s flat in Saratov, Russia, said Life News.
(Image: VK.com)
Russian law enforcement have said Ruzankina dropped her daughter from the balcony of the sixth-floor apartment and is being detained on suspicion of murder.
The incident came after Ruzankina had been out to a nightclub and was drunk, said reports.
A male passerby – seen on the video – said he heard “a child’s loud screams from an upper floor.
“And suddenly I heard a dull sound of falling.
(Image: Instagram)
“The screams stopped.
“When I turned around, I saw a little girl covered in blood lying on the asphalt.
“I ran to call the emergency services. I was so shocked.”
Neighbours said the mother had claimed the child climbed over the balcony herself.
(Image: VK.com)
“I told her she would fall,” she was heard saying.
But the mum now faces up to 21 years in jail if charged and convicted of murdering a minor in a helpless state.
The Russian Investigative Committee said: “[Ruzankina] dropped her young daughter, born in 2018, from the balcony.”
“Currently, the suspect has been detained.”