A newborn boy was allegedly beaten by his teenage mother, who then left him alone while she went on a date.
One-month-old Mykyta was found beaten black and blue on the verge of death in the city of Rivne in the western region of Ukraine.
Witnesses say one of the neighbours who discovered the boy fainted after seeing his horrific condition.
According to reports, Mykyta and his 19-year-old mother lived together in a social hostel.
On October 15 the mother, who has not been named, left her baby alone and went on a date, according to reports.
One-month-old Mykyta was left in critical condition allegedly after being beaten up by his mother who then left him home alone to go on a date
Police launched a criminal case for battery and failure to fulfil parental duties against the teenage mother (pictured being interviewed by an officer)
She was away for the whole day and her neighbours, who knew that Mykyta was alone in his room, started worrying and decided to check on him.
Tetiana Prymak, a woman living next door said to local media: ‘When we entered the room we saw Mykyta in his crib.
‘His right eye was black. His nose was blocked with dried blood and he was barely breathing.
‘We started changing his clothes and saw black bruises all over his body. One woman who was in the room fainted after seeing all this.’
The neighbours called an ambulance and the police. Mykyta was rushed to intensive care where he is in a critical condition and doctors are still battling for his life.
Medics assume the child has skull fractures but they cannot examine him because of his grave condition.
Mykyta (left and right) was allegedly left in a life-threatening condition by his mother in Rivne, Ukraine, inflicting him with horrific injuries
Newborn baby Mykyta pictured (above) being treated by medics in intensive care at a hospital in Rivne, Ukraine
Mykhailo Kulik, the head of the intensive care unit of Rivne Regional Children’s Hospital said: ‘The boy is in a serious life-threatening condition. We suspect that his skull is fractured but we cannot examine it now.
‘I have never seen a baby in such a terrible neglected state. I think his mother has never changed his clothes nor used diapers. His skin is in awful condition.’
The mother came home this morning and was taken to a police department for an interrogation.
Police spokesman Anton Kruk said: ‘The mother said that she was stressed out because of the baby’s constant crying. She left the baby home alone and went on a date.’
Police launched a criminal case for battery and failure to fulfil parental duties against the mother.
Social service psychologist, Yulia Tkachenko, could not help crying after seeing the child and having a conversation with his mother, Ukrainian media reported.
She said: ‘There is no any doubts that the baby was brutally beaten up. The mother said that ”she did not touch Mykyta and that his injuries were caused by cold draft”.’
The crib in a social housing hostel in Rivne where neighbours said they found baby Mykyta suffering from horrific injuries
According to reports in local media, Mykyta and his 19-year-old mother lived together in a social hostel (pictured)
Mykyta’s father, a man of 27 years, is not interested in the fate of the boy, local media report.
Igor Novosad, the head of the social hostel who knows the family said: ‘The mother has an older son.
‘She gave him birth at 16 and he is three years old now. The child was taken from her to a rehabilitation centre because of domestic abuse.’
Reports from local media suggested that both children are fathered by different men.
Social services are said to be collecting documents in order to sue the mother.
Andriy Mishchenia, the head of Rivne Child Protection Service said: ‘The mother is going to be deprived of parental rights. The baby boy will be taken away from her and placed into an orphanage.’
The mother faces up to five years in prison if found guilty, police said.
The children’s hospital in Rivne, Ukraine, where doctors are still battling to save the life of baby Mykyta