Man who threw hot coffee on baby in Brisbane is still on the run – as police try to track down who he is
The mother of a badly burned baby says she suffers from panic attacks, while a stranger who poured hot coffee on her nine-month-old son remains at large.
The baby underwent a second operation on Friday after suffering burns to his face and body in the “cowardly” and random attack in a Brisbane park.
His parents have not left him in hospital since the incident in Hanlon Park on Tuesday as police search for the man.
The boy was able to walk unaided for the first time hours before he was burned during a picnic in the park, his parents said.
“He seems completely back to normal, which is nice to see because the last few days have been really, really hard,” the mother told reporters, fighting back tears.
“He’s doing well. He’s really playing.”
But the woman said she was still reeling from the incident and feared another incident.
“I keep replaying it in my head,” she said.
The nine-month-old baby boy (pictured) was attacked in a Brisbane park on Tuesday
Police on Thursday morning released a second photo (pictured) of a man they want to speak to in connection with the alleged attack in a Brisbane park
‘Last night I had a panic attack. I thought he was going to hurt someone else because he was there.
“If he can do this to an innocent baby, he can do much worse things. I don’t want to hurt anyone anymore.”
Police are hoping someone will recognize a man in the enhanced footage they released.
“If you know this man, come forward,” the mother said.
The boy’s father described the horrific moment he was told his son had been badly burned.
He was in a shopping mall with his daughter when he called his partner after realizing he had missed several calls.
“I knew straight away something had to be wrong. I got hold of her on the car speaker,” he told Network Ten’s The Project.
“My daughter… was in the car and it was playing over Bluetooth and she heard everything.”
The father said that when his daughter saw her brother in the emergency room, she said, “I hope the bad guy doesn’t hurt me.”
The boy is still in stable condition in hospital and will probably undergo another operation next week.
“They were able to tell us that the burns on the side of his face, his forearms and his legs would all be superficial and that they would all heal well,” the father said.
The mother wanted to thank the nurse who had helped in the park by taking her son to her nearby apartment to put him in the shower after bystanders poured cold water on the baby.
A GoFundMe page for the baby had raised nearly $93,000 as of Friday.
“It has restored my faith in the community and there is so much kindness out there,” the mother said.
The man was wearing glasses, a shirt, shorts and a black hat.
He is believed to be between 30 and 40 years old, of proportionate build and tanned skin.
