An 11-year-old Australian boy died from a snake bite after his father assumed his son’s symptoms were from the effects of alcohol which he had apparently consumed earlier in the day.
The body of Tristian James Frahm was discovered by his family on November 21, a day after he had claimed to have been bitten by a snake. The tragic incident took place back in 2021, although an inquest into the boy’s death has only recently released its findings, determining that Tristian could very well have survived had he received medical attention sooner as per PEOPLE.
An autopsy confirmed that Tristan had “died from extensive internal bleeding due to brown snake envenomation.” According to Billabong Sanctuary, Brown Snake venom is considered the second most toxic snake venom in the world (first place goes to another Australian species called the Inland Taipan). In Tristian’s case, he died from a major haemorrhage which was caused by the bite.
Tristian’s father had been informed of the bite
The inquest heard that three adults, including Tristian’s father, had “received information that Tristian may have been bitten by a snake” after falling off of a ride-on mower. While they did check him for such a bite they were unable to find any puncture marks.
Of course, Tristian’s symptoms would have been cause for concern, however, upon learning that his son had consumed alcohol earlier in the day, his father became convinced that the boy was feeling ill because he had been drinking. At this point, his father, the man who was supposed to protect his son, had unintentionally sealed his fate.
Despite the concerning symptoms, Tristian’s father was “adamant” that this was the cause. Because of this, they decided not to seek medical assistance, instead, the father told his son to “sleep it off.”
He was sent to bed but continued to experience severe symptoms including “pain in the belly,” and vomiting. Eventually he passed away as a result of the bite. The autopsy did not show any evidence of alcohol in Tristian’s system although the document states that it could have been entirely metabolized by the time of his passing.
What happened to the father?
Tristian’s father was initially charged with manslaughter and was set to stand trial after the death of his son. However, the trial never took place as the charge was eventually discontinued in April of 2024.
Emergency physician, Dr. Mark Little, stated that Tristian’s symptoms were consistent with alcohol consumption and possibly a mild concussion from falling off of the mower. He stated that he could see how the adults may have mistakenly interpreted the symptoms for that of alcohol consumption. Regardless, had Tristian James Frahm received medical attention sooner, he may still be alive today.
