Family friend: Child who survived mall plunge back in school

MINNEAPOLIS – A family friend of a 5-year-old who survived after being thrown from a third-story balcony at the Mall of America in Minnesota says the boy is back in school and walking without a limp.

Noah Hanneman posted on a GoFundMe page that the boy, named Landen, was released from the hospital in early August and is “now walking PERFECTLY with even legs.”

The post says Landen returned home with a limp and uneven legs from a two-time broken femur and has had “many physical therapies” to work on his walking.

The attack happened on April 12. Landen plunged 40 feet (12 metres) when he was randomly grabbed by Emmanuel Aranda and tossed over the railing.

Aranda pleaded guilty to attempted murder and was sentenced to 19 years in prison.