AL-JOUF: The father of a baby boy who was kidnapped from a hospital here in December when he was only a day old has filed a lawsuit against the Ministry of Health demanding SR60 million in compensation for the loss of his son.
Marzouq Sulaiman Al- Sarhani told Arab News that his son went missing because of negligence on the part of the hospital, adding that the administrative court in Al-Jouf city was considering his case.
His lawyer, Khaled bin Saud Al-Badi, said the court has held a number of hearings, which have been attended by a representative from the Health Ministry, adding that the court would look into the case from all aspects before issuing a final ruling.
Al-Badi said it was clear from the proceedings of the lawsuit that the Health Ministry does not have a consolidated system to protect newborn babies and that this is left to the discretion of individual hospitals.
A nurse suspected a woman who came to the nursery four times saying the mother of the baby, Fakhriya Diyab, wanted to breast-feed her son. The baby was taken away while nurses were preoccupied with another newborn baby.
Col. Daman bin Wanis Al-Daraan, a police spokesman, said the case was still being investigated and that he was confident that the culprit would be caught no matter how long it takes.
The spokesman said Al-Jouf Gov. Prince Fahd bin Badr was personally following the case and had received Al-Sarhani three days after his son’s disappearance.
The governor directed all concerned government departments to help find the missing baby. He has also set up a committee to investigate shortcomings in the hospital that led to the incident. The committee will make suggestions to prevent similar incidents in future.
The mother, who left the hospital on Jan. 7 without her baby, is traumatized.
Al-Sarhani added that there is nothing he wants but to be reunited with his son. “He is my second son whom I have not seen,” he said, thanking members of the public for their support.
