THE wife of a man who jumped 50ft from a hotel balcony with his two children said yesterday that the family was on holiday to escape the pressures of everyday life.
John Hogan, 32, from Bristol, is alleged to have pushed his son, Liam, 6, to his death before leaping from the top-floor balcony of their hotel in Crete, injuring his daughter, Mia, 2. He was charged with his son’s murder yesterday.
Mr Hogan, who had been drinking heavily and had taken antidepressants, suffered a broken arm and leg in the fall.
His wife, Natasha, 34, a nurse, issued a statement yesterday saying: “All the family were looking forward to this holiday. It was to be an opportunity for us to enjoy quality time together in an environment away from the general strains of daily life.”
Mrs Hogan is expected to return to Britain shortly with her daughter, who was released from hospital after being treated for a broken arm. Mrs Hogan was also making arrangements for her son’s body to be returned.
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A police guard remained outside Mr Hogan’s room in the intensive care unit at Agios Nicolaos hospital.
When he was transferred there he was heard to whisper: “What have I done? What have I done?” It also emerged that when he was told that he had killed his own son and badly injured his daughter, he said: “I want to die.”
The family was staying at a beachfront hotel in the resort of Ierapetra. During the two-week holiday it is understood that Mrs Hogan announced that she was going to divorce her husband, who runs a tiling business in Bristol.
Tourists staying in neighbouring rooms reported hearing a blazing row between the couple and Mr Hogan shouting obscenities at his wife.
Ioannis Katrinis, the deputy chief of police at Ierapetra, said: “The police have completed the preliminary investigation and given it to a prosecutor. He studied the file overnight and has no doubt that the evidence to support the charge is clear and overwhelming.”
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Mr Hogan has been charged with premeditated murder with possible malice aforethought, a charge used by Greek police to press what they consider to be an open-and-shut case.
It carries a maximum life sentence, limited to 25 years in Greece. However, Mr Hogan’s history of depression could be taken into account. His mother, Josephine, 64, was at his bedside in Heraklion yesterday. Members of Mrs Hogan’s family have also flown to the island.
Liam Hogan attended Wheatfield Primary School, in Bradley Stoke. Chris Dursley, the headteacher, said of him yesterday: “He was a delightful child and it’s desperately sad that he should lose his life in such tragic circumstances.”