Ivan’s story has touched the hearts of many across Russia after being aired on state TV. Numerous people raised money and offered their assistance to facilitate the boy’s recovery, but the miracle everybody hoped for was not to happen.

“Ivan departed into a better world today. It’s impossible to accept this or be ready for this,” the sad message, which appeared in a social media group dedicated to the teen on Tuesday, read.

The boy from the northern city of Severodvinsk has been fighting for his life since May last year when a drunken party, involving his mother and her shared apartment neighbor, ended in a tragedy. There was a quarrel and the former convict attacked the woman with a dumbbell and a knife, delivering her several stab wounds.

14-year-old Ivan rushed to his mom’s rescue without any hesitation, but he was no match for the grown man, who already served time for murder. The brave boy collapsed after receiving three heavy blows to his head with a dumbbell.

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Ivan was taken to hospital in regional capital Archangelsk and then transferred to Saint Petersburg. The young hero underwent several surgeries and miraculously survived, but the damaged done to his health was immense. The teen was missing the front of his skull; had part of his brain removed, while one of his eyes was dented.

The police detained the attacker and he went to trial on charges of attempted murder of two people. The judges sentenced him to 14.5 years in prison and ordered to pay a compensation of 1 million rubles (around $15,000) to his victims.

Ivan’s story was already heartbreaking, but it somehow got even worth. Several months later, the media revealed that the teen’s mother, who recovered from her wounds, has given up on her son and never visited him in hospital.

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She was eventually deprived of her parental rights, while the custody over Ivan was given to his older brother.

The woman later appeared on a prime-time talk show on Rossiya 1 and asked the audience to forgive her. She confessed to having problems with alcohol and said she was ready to go to rehab.

Despite Ivan’s death, Russia’s Investigative Committee said that it’ll continue its probe into the incident so that all those responsible face punishment. The investigations have some serious questions for child services, district police, and corrections officers, who somehow allowed a woman with an underage child to live under the same roof with a former convict. The family was housed in a shared apartment after their shabby house was demolished as part of a renovation program. 

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