'There is no one to blame, it was God's will': Boy, 14, who died in west Lothian school had undetected heart condition
9 June 2023, 14:33
A 14-year-old boy who died at a school in west Lothian, Scotland, died from natural causes, his family has confirmed.
Messages posted online suggested there may have been a fight involving Hamdan Aslam, who died on Tuesday.
But today, through a statement released via their solicitor, Hamdan's family confirmed he had a pre-existing heart condition that had never been detected.
"Sadly his death could have occurred at any time," his family said.
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The boy's family continued: "Our family is left devastated by the sudden and tragic loss of our beautiful boy Hamdan who brought so much joy to our lives.
"We want to assure Hamdan's friends and our community that this was an entirely natural death and could not have been predicted.
"A full police investigation is being carried out, but we can confirm that Hamdan had a pre-existing heart condition that had never been detected, and sadly his death could have occurred at any time.
"There is no one to blame for his loss, it was God's will."
They added: "We know that Hamdan's teachers and friends did everything possible to save his life and for that our family will for ever be grateful to them."
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Following his death, Hamdan's family urged people not to speculate about how he died.
They said: "We know that Hamdan's loss is being deeply felt by his friends and teachers and we would urge those who have engaged in rumours on social media to stop. It is untruthful and compounding our grief.
"Please take down the posts, the running commentary is unhelpful to the children, teachers and our family who have been left deeply traumatised and devastated."
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Writing on the school website following Hamdan's death, headteacher Andrew Sharkey said: "Our thoughts and prayers are with their family and friends and we extend our deepest condolences and offers of support.
"We have set up ongoing emotional support and signposting for students and staff affected by this tragic news."We would like to respect the family's privacy at this incredibly painful time.
"We are assisting the relevant authorities with their investigation to establish the facts and we will not be making any further comment at this time."
