Norfolk, November 10: Admitting to breaking safety rules, the owner of the funfair, where a three-year-old child died after a trampoline exploded, received a six-month jail term on Friday, November 10. On July 1, 2018, toddler Ava-May Littleboy was having a day out in Gorleston-on-Sea, in the United Kingdom's Norfolk, when the trampoline she was jumping on exploded, sending her flying higher than a house. With a fatal head injury, the toddler toppled over five or six times before reaching the ground.

Ava-May's parents, Chloe Littleboy and Nathan Rowe hurried to her side, but they were unable to revive her, and she passed away at the hospital. Ava-May, from Lower Somersham, Suffolk, was carried onto the trampoline while at the beach with her family, according to testimony given at her 2020 death inquest. Mumbai: Youth Fractures His Leg After Trampoline Spring Breaks at Game Zone in Infiniti Mall, FIR Registered (Watch Video).

During Friday's sentence hearing, District Judge Christopher Williams stated that Curt Johnson, the owner of the inflatable, was "wilfully blind to the risk" and that the inflatable "should not have been in use".  Considering the pain and suffering the family has endured, I have to come to the conclusion that a deterrent term is appropriate in this situation, he said.

After the punishment was handed down, Ava-May's parents, who were seated in the public gallery, gave each other a hug while other family members wiped tears from their eyes. The 52-year-old Johnson did not respond as he was shown to the cells. In addition, the judge fined Johnsons Funfair Ltd £20,000 and barred Johnson from serving as a director of the firm for five years. Woman Falls off Amusement Park Ride in Mexico; Horrific Video Goes Viral.

Johnson entered a guilty plea to two charges of violating health and safety regulations, as did his business Johnsons Funfair. In 2017, Johnson was the company's operations manager. They imported the trampoline from China and operated under the name Bounceabout.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 10, 2023 11:10 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).