Boy in Penang dies after choking on 'eyeball' gummy candy

A 10-year-old boy who had been fighting for his life in intensive care for two days after choking on a gummy candy nearly the size of a table tennis ball died on Feb 20.

Bernama news reported that Mohamad Fahmi Hafiz died at 11pm at the Penang General Hospital’s paediatric intensive case unit, citing the boy’s aunt, Ms Siti Farhani Mohamad Fikri.

Ms Farhani told Bernama that Fahmi would be buried in his grandmother’s hometown of Permatang Binjai in Penang. The Star reported on Feb 21 that he had been laid to rest at the Masjid Jamek Permatang Binjai Muslim cemetery, and that over 200 friends and family members attended the ceremony.

In a Facebook post on Feb 19, Ms Farhani had shared that her nephew was in critical condition after choking on an eyeball-shaped gummy he had purchased outside his school compound at Sekolah Kebangsaan Sungai Dua in Butterworth, Penang.

Penang news outlet Guang Ming Daily reported that North Seberang Perai district police’s Assistant Commissioner Anuar Abdul Rahman said in a Feb 20 statement that Fahmi had been walking with his classmates on their way to the toilet at 2.30pm on Feb 18 when he suddenly lost consciousness and fell.

His classmates sought help from a teacher, who performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation on the Year Four pupil, but was unable to revive him.

AC Anuar said emergency medical staff from Seremban Jaya Hospital arrived at the scene and removed the candy from Fahmi’s throat, but he had fallen into a coma by then and was rushed to Penang General Hospital.

The Star reported on Feb 21 that the Penang state Health Department had seized the gummy candy - identified as “Gummy Original Basketball Soft Candy” - from stores near Fahmi’s school.

Malaysia’s Health Ministry subsequently said in a statement that the sale of this product is strictly prohibited on all online platforms and in local markets. Enforcement actions, including product seizures, will be carried out in accordance with these regulations, it said.

At the same time, the public, especially parents, are urged to monitor and advise their children to be more cautious when choosing food, particularly those that pose a choking risk. Choking hazards are a significant risk, especially among infants and young children, the ministry added.

The New Straits Times (NST) reported on Feb 21 that Fahmi’s parents, and younger sister, Nufa Fakhira, four, and his grandmother also visited him on Feb 20. Nufa cried out to her brother, asking him to swim with her.

“I accept it, even though he left so quickly. At least he is no longer suffering,” said Fahmi’s father, Mohamad Fakhruddin Mohamad Fikri, as quoted by NST.

“The hands that have cared for him since he was little will now bathe and shroud my son. I don’t know how I will manage it,” said the 35-year-old.

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