Child in abuse case remembered as a ‘cute little kid’
Ferro-James Tiopira Sio loved PAW Patrol and Spiderman.
At just 5 years old he took pride in wearing his school uniform and was very proud of the fact he went to school.
But this ‘‘cute little kid’’ had his life cut drastically short after he died in Rotorua Hospital on February 8.
His father, William James Jason Sio, 24, has been charged with his murder.
A 28-year-old woman has also been charged with ill treatment/ neglect of a child.
Both are due to appear in Rotorua District Court on Thursday, February 27.
A woman who knew Ferro, and was close with his father, said the first time she met the boy he had bruising to his eye.
She asked where he got it from and was told another child had inflicted the injury on him.
In another incident where she saw him with a black eye, she was told he’d run into a window.
At the time of his death she thought someone was in the process of notifying authorities about the behaviour.
But planned intervention came too late.
The injuries Ferro suffered were extreme and she said his death had been hard for everyone to process. ‘‘He was such a cute little kid.’’ When Ferro was about twoyears-old his dad was given full custody of him by Oranga Tamariki.
She said Ferro always spoke highly of his dad.
‘‘He loved his dad no matter what. That is why I can’t believe this has happened.’’
She said the impact of his loss was being felt by many.
‘‘He is missed, he is really missed.’’
She urged anyone who suspected something was not right to speak up.
‘‘Go and talk to somebody, anybody.’’
To Ferro’s alleged killer she had two words.
‘‘Be honest.’’ Ferro-James’ death brings the number of child homicide victims (aged 0-14) in New Zealand to 138 since the beginning of 2004, an average of nine per year.
Two thirds of child victims are aged under three. Last year 12 children died in suspicious circumstances. This is the first of 2020.
The data comes from The Homicide Report – an ongoing Stuff investigation into why New Zealanders kill.
New Zealand has one of the worst child homicide rates in the OECD, despite having a low overall homicide rate, relative to other OECD countries.