By Khidr Al-Khairat and Abeer Abbas

Okaz/Saudi Gazette

JAZAN — A four-year-old kindergarten child died in Sabya governorate on Tuesday after he was locked inside the school bus for several hours.

Jazan Police spokesman Capt. Naif Bin Al-Hikami said they received reports of the death of the student from Sabya General Hospital around Tuesday noon.

Police identified the child as Yamin Khawaji who attended Dowhatul Al-Qur'an Al-Kareem Nursery in Al-Dhibya.

They said there were no signs of violence or physical abuse on the child's body. "Investigations revealed that Yamin slept on the bus on the way to school and did not come out with the other kids," said Al-Hikami. He added Yamin was left locked in the bus and he suffocated to death.

"His uncle came to pick up Yamin after school as usual, but the school authorities told him the boy was absent on the day. He looked around for him until he found him dead inside the bus. Forensic reports state that the child died of a sharp fall in body temperature, which is usually caused by suffocation," said Al-Hikami.

He said Yamin's father accepted the reality of his son's death as fate and left the body in the hospital morgue for further investigations.

"Police detained the driver for questioning but the owner of the nursery left the country. The nursery was shut down following the incident," said Al-Hikami.

Jazan Education Affairs spokesman Ali Khawaji said the child was not enrolled in any of the institutions under the Education Directorate in Sabya.

"We have not issued any license to the nursery where the child was enrolled. The nursery was apparently operating under the Qur'an Recitation Charity Organization in Sabya," said Khawaji.

The victim's parents were shocked by the incident. Yamin is their second child. His older brother, Ayman, is in primary school.