25-year-old Afghan asylum seeker, Ayoubi Nadir, has been charged with endangering the life of a child and is also accused of abandoning his son, after the boat bringing them and 22 other people to Samos from Turkey capsized this month.
He faces up to 10 years in prison if found guilty.
Accounts from the Greek authorities and the man’s lawyer Dimitris Choulis, said that the boat capsized near the island of Samos just after midnight on Nov. 8. The boy’s body was found washed up on the shore later that day.
Mr Choulis said the case against his client was unfounded. He said the man was being punished for trying to seek a better life for his family.
A spokesperson from the Greek coastguard told The Guardian it had been informed of the incident in the early hours of Sunday, but when two coastguard boats arrived at the location, they did not find any passengers.
The Coastguard added that the initial search did not find the vessel - and that darkness had hindered their work.
All the passengers were later found along the shore.
The spokesperson added that a 23-year-old who was understood to be in charge of the boat, has been arrested.
