The circumstances surrounding this youngster were both tragic and extraordinary. He survived on a meager diet of cakes, cold canned goods, and occasionally tomatoes that he was able to steal from a neighbor’s balcony.
He was very adept at maintaining his personal cleanliness and staying warm, frequently sleeping with several blankets on chilly evenings without heat.
Living a short distance away, his mother mostly left him on his own but occasionally came to deliver meals.
The youngster continued to attend school where he was seen as a “good pupil,” which may have contributed to the delay in realizing his predicament, so this neglect went undiscovered for a long time.
