Family Sues For 2014 Mall Escalator Incident Where Boy Lost Toes

It was just before Christmas in 2014 when the packed corridors of the Oxford Valley Mall echoed with screams emanating from a young boy whose foot was stuck on the side of the escalator.

Two years after the incident that left the boy with permanent injuries, what happened that late December afternoon is now the basis for legal action.

According to a lawsuit filed against the company that owns the Middletown mall, Simon Property Group, and the maker of the escalator, Schindler Corporation, the 7-year-old boy has been left with permanent damage and disfigurement due to the incident.

NJ.com first reported on the lawsuit Wednesday morning and said the 7-year-old boy’s parents – Celestino Rivas and Maria Jimenez – filed their legal action against the owner of the mall and escalator company. The lawsuit claims mall and escalator company were negligent in maintaining the keeping up the machine.

The boy’s foot, according to authorities in 2014, became stuck in the escalator as the 7 year old rode down to the first floor with his mother. The NJ.com report states the boy’s foot was dragged between a step and the right-side skirt panel.

Witnesses told LevittowNow.com at the time that the boy was shrieking due to the incident. He had to be freed by volunteer firefighters from the  Fairless Hills, Langhorne-Middletown and Penndel fire companies. They used hydraulic tools to remove the boy’s foot from the escalator.

The boy suffered a partly-amputated toe and the skin was ripped off from all of the toes on his right foot, the London Daily Mail reported, citing the lawsuit.

The boy was flown via helicopter from St. Mary Medical Center to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

NJ.com reported the boy ended up having his right toes amputated and several operations on his foot and leg. The boy has trouble walking due to the injuries.

The boy was wearing proper shoes at the time of the incident, the London Daily Mail article stated.

In January 2016, a 2-year-old girl suffered a minor injury when her finger was tangled in the mall escalator.

An attempt to contact Simon Property Group and the escalator company were not successful as of Wednesday evening.