Minnesota Boy Thrown from 40 Foot Balcony Shows Truly Miraculous Recovery, Pastor Said

On April 12, a Minnesota boy was thrown by a stranger down from the third floor of the Mall of America. According to the boy’s pastor, the child is making a miraculous recovery.

The family’s pastor revealed that the boy’s injuries appeared to be those of someone who fell off a bicycle instead of the third floor.

According to Pastor Mac Hammond of the Living Word Christian Center, Landen Hoffman, 5. is making a miraculous recovery after being thrown from the third floor of the Mall of America. During an Easter Sunday service, the family’s pastor shared the boy’s current condition with his congregation since the incident occurred.

Hammond said: "There was zero evidence of brain damage - there wasn't even swelling," and "No spinal cord injury, no nerve damage, no internal injuries that were life-threatening." However, he shared that the boy had suffered several broken bones.

Hammond revealed that the doctor had compared Hoffman’s injuries to someone falling off a bicycle rather than falling from three stories. The child had gone through an MRI that lasted five hours and his results were said to be “truly a miracle.”

Stephen Tillitt, an attorney who is representing the family, shared a statement that read: "We have an important week ahead with more milestones to accomplish." The boy was said to be at the hospital in intensive care and under sedation.

Emmanuel Aranda, 24, was arrested and charged with first degree attempted premeditated murder. A criminal complaint said the boy and his mother were outside the Rain Forest Café when Aranda came up to them.

Hoffman’s mother asked the man, who was unknown to her, if they should move for him. The suspect responded by picking up the boy and throwing him nearly 40 feet over the railing.

Aranda confessed to the police that he’d visited the mall a day earlier with the intention to kill an adult, but that didn’t “work out.” So he returned the next day and chose Hoffman as his victim instead.

The suspect admitted that he knew what he had planned and done was wrong. He explained that he’d visited the mall for years, trying to speak to women there, but they always rejected him.

Aranda said that was his motive for lashing out. Previously he was banned from the mall, but the ban was not in effect at the time of the incident.

The suspect has a history of misdemeanor convictions with some of the cases being handled through a mental health court. In 2015, Aranda was arrested at the mall and faced three charges after he threw an object off the mall's third level and became uncooperative with police.

A GoFundMe account was set up for the boy and has reached more than $990,000 with a goal of $1 million.

Aranda, a Minnesota resident, appeared in a courtroom at the Hennepin County jail on April 16 where he was ordered to be held on a $2 million bail. The ruling was given by Judge Jeannice Reding.

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