A three-year-old girl who dangled for at least nine minutes from a window ledge above a pawnbroker’s shop in east London was caught by a police officer and a civilian who said his cricket skills helped him save her.
Footage posted on social media showed the girl desperately trying to pull herself up as bystanders screamed “Hurry up”. A woman appeared from a window below, calling and reaching out, while a police officer on a ledge could only look on helplessly.
“Cricket-playing hero Mohamed Jesil catches three-year-old after nine-minute window ledge ordeal in Ilford.”
Then Mohamed Jesil, a restaurant manager and father of five-month-old twins, ran from his nearby home and joined the officer. As the girl’s grip began to fail, the two men positioned themselves directly below her. Gasps from the crowd turned to cheers as she fell into Jesil’s arms, with the officer steadying them both as Jesil wobbled.
“I ran out on instinct. I’m a dad of twins aged five months, and as a dad I just reacted,” Jesil told Metro. “I wasn’t scared, I just didn’t think. I’m not a hero, I just did it as a dad seeing a child in trouble.” He added that playing cricket in India “may have helped with my catching. I just knew I had to concentrate.”
Police were called to Ilford High Road shortly after 3.20pm on Tuesday following reports of concerns for a child’s safety. The girl was brought to safety by 3.32pm by an attending officer and a member of the public, the Met Police said.
After the rescue, Jesil said the little girl gave him a “big hug”. “There was massive relief when I managed to catch her; she didn’t say anything, just gave me a big hug. I’m so happy it could help.”
The girl’s father described the policeman and Jesil as “amazing heroes”. He told Metro that his daughter was “fine” and would be going to school following the ordeal. He added that Jesil was a “complete stranger” to the family. “They were both amazing. They were heroes. We are so relieved. They saved our child.”
Asked how his daughter came to be on the ledge, the father did not reveal details but said: “She’s very strong.”