A 12-year-old boy died after becoming trapped between two rocks in a river in North Yorkshire, an inquest has heard. Khaled Basem Al Satouf, from Leeds, was on a family trip at Richmond Falls on the River Swale when he suddenly disappeared on August 16.
Witnesses reported seeing the boy 'messing around' in the water before his family began screaming from a nearby pebble beach. Paul Norton, a witness, said he saw Khaled in water up to his neck and thought he was simply having fun. 'Two minutes later, I heard screams from further along the falls... I turn around, and he's no longer there,' he told Northallerton Coroner's Court.
A child witness, who cannot be named, said she was in the water with Khaled when he vanished. 'I was in the water near a rock and Khaled was going to get out. I thought he was joking. He was always joking,' she said. 'I saw him go under the water for a while and said Khaled is drowning.'
North Yorkshire Police launched a search at around 5pm, and Khaled's body was found at approximately 10:45pm, about 12 feet below the surface, trapped between two rocks. Assistant coroner for North Yorkshire Alison Norton ruled the death an accident, with drowning as the cause.
