Police launch murder investigation after woman and son, 7, fall from ferry in Baltic Sea

Police have launched a murder enquiry after a Polish woman and her 7-year-old son died after plunging from a Baltic Sea ferry travelling from Sweden to Poland yesterday (29 June)

The is understood the boy fell from the Stena Spirit, at a height of around 20 metres, before the woman jumped overboard in an attempt to rescue him, Swedish authorities said.

The mother was located in the water by rescuers 59 minutes after the pair were reported missing, and her son was found seven minutes later.

After they were located, the pair were winched to a helicopter and then transported to a Swedish hospital where they died.

The Swedish prosecution authority said on Friday it had initiated a murder probe but no suspect had been identified.

Prosecutor Stina Brindmark said: “The investigation aims to try to clarify what happened.”

Related Article

Polish police spokesman Mariusz Ciarka, said: “Unfortunately, in the morning we received information from the Swedish side that we have to pass on this terrible news to the family, because both the boy and the woman are dead.”.

The Swedish ferry was in the Baltic midway through its journey to Gdynia in Poland from Karlskrona in Sweden when the pair plunged into the water.

The boy fell from a height of about 20 metres (65 feet), according to Swedish Maritime Administration spokesman, Jonas Franzen.

Stena Line spokesperson Agnieszka Zembrzycka told TVN 24: “At the moment we have no information whether this was due to a malfunction of the ferry.

“We are cooperating with the police and other authorities that are appointed to explain the causes and circumstances of this event.”

Swedish police issued an appeal to Polish passengers via Poland’s state-run news agency PAP asking for information that could explain how the accident occurred.

Additional reporting by Reuters.