A British father had a ‘momentary lapse of attention’ before his two-year-old son fell out of a hotel window in Cyprus, his lawyer has today revealed.
Joshua Foster, 37, an AI director at management consultants KPMG, was arrested on suspicion of causing death by ‘a rash, dangerous or reckless act’ hours after his son plunged from the fourth-floor balcony of the five-star King Evelthon Hotel on July 12.
Appearing at Paphos District Court on Tuesday the father, from Essex, pleaded guilty and is now facing a maximum sentence of four years in prison, the minimum being a fine.
Foster now has to wait two weeks until his sentencing on October 5 to learn his fate. He may be able to serve a suspended sentence in the UK if he is given less than three years.
He will be allowed to travel home for 10 days before he is sentenced at Paphos District Court.
His lawyer, Alexandros Ch. Alexandrou, said: ‘Today, my client pleaded guilty to the charge arising from the tragic circumstances which resulted in the death of his two-year-old son.
‘This was a momentary lapse of attention, without any intention to cause harm, which had the most devastating and unimaginable consequences.’
Joshua Foster a 37-year-old KPMG AI director pleaded guilty over the death of his two-year-old son, who died after falling from a hotel window in Cyprus
The tragic incident occurred on the first day of their holiday when the 37-year-old reportedly put his son on a windowsill at the hotel while waiting for a lift believing the window was closed.
To his horror, the boy fell backwards and plunged 33ft. He was pronounced dead on arrival at the Paphos General Hospital.
Foster was initially held on remand without charge for eight days in what local press described as Cypriot police’s ‘cruellest act’.
His lawyer asked for the case to be thrown out on humanitarian grounds, arguing there was no public interest in continuing the prosecution.
Any prolonged criminal process, he added, would only deepen the family’s trauma.
Speaking to reporters, he said: ‘Last night he decided to plead guilty in order to end this story, to face whatever is going to be the penalty.
‘To go back to his family which is the most important thing in his mind, to support, grieve and stand with his family.’
He later added: ‘We will now present to the Court the relevant mitigating evidence and circumstances for consideration ahead of sentencing.
‘Since the horrific events which resulted in the loss of their beloved son, my client and his family have suffered unimaginable grief. They are living with a loss that no words can adequately describe.’
Mr Alexandrou said that before the guilty plea he had told his client what the procedures in Cyprus were and that a trial would have taken ‘many days’ and involved ‘pictures and evidence’ that would have been disturbing for the family.
He said his client was a ‘father who found himself in an unfortunate situation’, and that there was no intent.
Foster was forced to tell his five-year-old daughter of her brother’s death over FaceTime.
She and her mother – a 38-year-old health professional – returned home to the UK at the end of July.
Toxicology reports found a very small quantity of alcohol, equivalent to one or two drinks, in the man’s blood.
Once he was formally charged, he was forced to pay a total of €30,000 (£25,750) in bail and was banned from leaving the island – though this was temporarily lifted on August 5 to allow him to bury his son.
Today Foster was released from court on the same bail conditions after pleading guilty and will return to court for sentencing a week on Monday.
Of the toddler, a family member told the Daily Mail: ‘He was a truly special, easy-going little boy who brought so much joy to everyone around him.
The toddler was the third British tourist to die at the five-star King Evelthon Hotel near Paphos in four years
Foster placed the toddler on a windowsill at the King Evelthon Hotel, near Paphos, while waiting for the lift not realising the window was open.
‘He was deeply adored and his infectious smile, warm cuddles and kind heart are already so deeply missed and always will be.’
Friends previously told the Daily Mail they were worried about how the family would survive if the legal proceedings continued. One said: ‘His main worry is about his daughter and his wife.
‘Obviously, he needs to go back to his job as soon as possible. I imagine his employer can’t keep his job open forever…’
Foster has worked at the Big Four accountancy firm KPMG since 2015 after graduating from Loughborough University, where he met his wife.
The couple, who live in Chelmsford, only last month celebrated their tenth wedding anniversary.
They have travelled together extensively – including on a seven-month ‘megamoon’ to the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
Foster, who has been a keen tennis player since he was young, also used his tech skills to launch a start-up called Sportch in 2021.
It is described as the UK’s ‘number one tennis competition app’, and is used by 7,000 players from 400 clubs across the country.
Early last year he stepped down as chief executive, writing in a blog post: ‘This decision hasn’t been easy, but with two young children and significant commitments elsewhere, I know it’s vital to ensure that my personal bandwidth doesn’t inhibit the growth of Sportch.’
The Cypriot resort’s safety record has come under scrutiny after it emerged the child was the third British tourist to die there in four years.
Ben Woods, 21, from Leigh in Greater Manchester, drowned while playing volleyball in the hotel’s pool in July 2022.
Only the following year, six-year-old Ruaridh Nairne, from Inverness, also drowned.
And another woman reportedly died while swimming there in 2024.
When the Daily Mail visited the King Evelthon Hotel it found the large fourth-floor window was still open.
UK health and safety guidelines state hotel windows large enough that children can fall through should be restricted to an opening of 4in or less.
But in Cyprus the window must simply be above a ledge at least 3.5ft tall – which King Evelthon complies with.
