The British father under investigation following the death of his three-year-old son in a fall from a hotel balcony in Paphos will ask the court on Monday to temporarily lift his travel restrictions so he can return to the United Kingdom to attend the child’s funeral, his new lawyer said on Friday.

The father was accompanied by his parents as the hearing opened on Friday at Paphos district court. Their presence was a reminder that, while the legal process continues, the case centres on a family grieving the loss of a three-year-old boy.

Since the tragedy on July 12, the father has remained in Cyprus under court-imposed travel restrictions, separated from his wife and surviving five-year-old daughter, who have already returned to the United Kingdom.

Defence lawyer Alexandros Alexandrou, who was appointed earlier this week, said the application would be made on humanitarian grounds, to allow his client to reunite with his family and grieve before returning to Cyprus for the continuation of the legal proceedings.

“As the judge said, within the next week we’re going to have a decision,” Alexandrou told reporters outside court.

He explained that the defence had requested an adjournment rather than entering a plea, with the matter now set to resume on Monday.

“On that day we will request from the court to release the measure regarding not leaving Cyprus,” he said.

The father, 37, has been charged with causing death by a rash, reckless or dangerous act.

The lawyer said funeral arrangements had not yet been finalised and would depend on the court’s decision.

Alexandrou said his client wanted to return to the UK to be with his family after what he described as a tragedy.

“His wife left two days ago. She went back to the UK with the other child. He wishes to reunify with his family, to grieve and attend the funeral after this tragic incident,” he said.

He added that the legal issues surrounding the case would be dealt with after his client’s return to Cyprus.

“Whatever deals with the case from the legal aspect, we will follow that after he’s coming back from this given period,” he said.

Asked whether he expected the prosecution to oppose the request on the grounds that his client posed a flight risk, Alexandrou said he did not.

“I don’t believe they will because, as we all understand, it’s a major humanitarian factor that they have to deal with. It’s a tragedy,” he said.

The lawyer declined to comment on the merits of the case itself.

“I didn’t proceed to review the case file as I wished because there are missing documents that I need to conclude my study of the case,” he said.

Alexandrou also declined to discuss the circumstances surrounding the child’s death or whether any investigation had been carried out into the hotel where the incident occurred, saying his immediate priority was securing permission for his client to attend the funeral.

The father remains under investigation over the death of his three-year-old son, who fell from the fourth floor of a luxury hotel in Chlorakas while the family was on holiday in Cyprus. Th incident happened on the first day.

Under his bail conditions, he was ordered to surrender all travel documents, report weekly to Paphos central police station and remain in Cyprus pending trial proceedings.

Should the application be granted, the father would be required to return to Cyprus for the next stage of the proceedings, which is expected to take place after September 10 following the summer court recess.