Brutally beaten toddler out of hospital
The 4-year-old Flaxmere boy who was brutally beaten at a Ramsey Crescent address is out of Starship Children’s Hospital in Auckland.
The boy was admitted to hospital after a relative called police on January 29.
Members of the boy’s extended family, as well as his stepmother and father, were at his Ramsey Cres home during the time it is believed he was beaten.
Nearly five months on, and he’s making “steady progress in rehab”.
In April, Detective Inspector Mike Foster said the boy was talking but still “very ill” and had months of rehabilitation ahead of him. On Wednesday, Foster told
Hawke’s Bay Today that the boy had been discharged from hospital “about two months ago” and was undergoing treatment at an Auckland rehabilitation centre. “He’s making steady progress,” he said.
Foster said the boy’s injuries were “so severe” that he would “sadly” be doing rehab for a long time.
He previously compared the boy’s injuries to those suffered by James Whakaruru in 1999 and said they were the worst he had seen in his 30-year career.
Foster said it was a complex case and although no arrests had been made to date, he was hopeful there would be a trial.
“It depends a lot on medical advice.”
The boy is not living with extended wha¯ nau or other family members as other media reported, Foster said.
Alison McDonald, Oranga Tamariki deputy chief executive Children & Families South, told
Hawke’s Bay Today the agency was helping with the boy’s rehabilitation.
“We are working with his extended family to determine the best care arrangements for his future,” McDonald said.
“Oranga Tamariki has worked with health professionals during his recovery and rehabilitation and will continue to work alongside his extended family to help keep him safe and well when he is discharged.”
The agency also said that while there was an active police investigation and Family Court proceedings under way, further comment could not be made on the case.
In April, Foster told Hawke’s Bay
Today the entire case was not simply a matter of asking the boy who assaulted him, and then arresting them.
“It’s a complex case. We’ll make decisions on arrests once we have all the material in front of us and also once we have consulted with the Crown.”
Oranga Tamariki had previously worked with the family in “challenging circumstances”.”
The boy was admitted to hospital on at least one other occasion, with injuries that included broken bones.
Oranga Tamariki intervened and he was placed into the care of wider family then returned to immediate family shortly before Christmas, 2019.