Australian police are working with their international counterparts to locate a man they believe fled the country after pouring boiling coffee on a baby in Brisbane.
The random attack – which occurred last month and has shocked the nation – left the nine-month-old boy with “serious burns” to his face and limbs.
Queensland Police have issued an arrest warrant for a 33-year-old wanted over acts intending to cause grievous bodily harm, a charge which carries a possible life sentence.
However, on Monday they said their main suspect flew out of Sydney airport six days after the incident, and just 12 hours before they were able to confirm his identity.
The infant was at a picnic with his family at a suburban park on 31 August, when witnesses say a “strange man” approached, emptying a flask on the child before fleeing on foot.
The baby was immediately given first aid, before an off-duty nurse took him to her nearby apartment to run his burns under cold water.
However the child suffered dramatic injuries which have already required multiple surgeries, and his parents say he is facing a years-long road to recovery.
The motive behind the incident is still unknown, Det Insp Paul Dalton told media, describing the case as one of the “most complex and frustrating” he had ever led.
He confirmed that police knew to which country the suspect had fled, as well as his name, but said disclosing the information at this time could jeopardise their investigation.
The man is an “itinerant” worker who had travelled to Australia repeatedly since 2019 and had addresses in both New South Wales and Victoria.
Dept Insp Dalton also said the suspect was aware of “police methodologies” and had been “conducting counter-surveillance activities” to evade them.
The baby’s parents on Monday told media they were “devastated” to learn the suspect had left the country but also relieved he was gone.
“It sounds like they were very, very close in catching him, and this obviously means that we’re going to have to wait who knows how long to get justice for our son,” his mother told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
The boy is in “good spirits”, his father added, but may yet need further skin graft surgeries.
An online fundraising page for the baby boy has so far raised more than A$150,000 ($100,000 £76,000).
