Three Northland caregivers on trial for alleged abuse of foster children

The trial in Kaikohe is expected to last three weeks. Photo / 123RF

A boy who was in state care says he was chased by his caregiver on a quad bike before allegedly being run over and then beaten.

“He chased me up the hill on the quad and ran me over, ran my legs over and chucked me on the back of the bike and gave me a hiding,” he said.

The boy said after that incident he was taken back to a tree stump, a spot of alleged discipline, and told to stand there for an hour.

Now three Northland caregivers are on trial in the Kaikohe District Court before Judge Brandt Shortland for a combined 52 charges relating to ill-treatment and neglect of children, strangulation, assault, and possession of cannabis.

A Far North man and his wife had a long history of fostering children through Oranga Tamariki, two of whom have accused them of abuse.

Their son, who is also on trial, and his wife were also caregivers. .

The children lived in two properties at Taipā and Pawarenga and would often travel between the two houses for family events. The Crown case will focus on several key incidents, including one in Kumeu, one in a kitchen and one in a swimming pool.

On Tuesday the Crown opened its case to a jury of five men and seven women.

The three accused, who all deny the offending ever occurred, are being represented by Martin Hislop, Grant Anson, and Hugh Leabourn.

Hislop said the son provided a home full of hunting, fishing, and outdoor life and agreed the allegations were horrible, but they were only allegations.

The son’s home allegedly had a tree stump which the children claimed they were sent to stand on for hours at a time as punishment.

“You’ll hear about the stump, that will come up a lot, that was time out. What the defence says is, there was no violence towards these children, but there was discipline,” Hislop said in opening statements to the jury.

Anson and Leabourn, who are representing the father and his wife, both told the jury the events did not happen.

Leabourn, who is representing the woman who is charged with strangulation and several counts of assaults with weapons, said the case will come down to credibility.

“The slaps, the hits, those sorts of allegations denied. This is a case about credibility.

“Don’t get overwhelmed by the evidence, because there is a lot of it.”

The hearing is taking place in the Kaikohe District Court. Photo / Peter de Graaf

An evidential interview of the boy who was in the son’s care was played to the jury in which he detailed the alleged allegations. The child said he was routinely given a hiding for the smallest thing, often with a hose, and recalled being chased by the defendant on a quad bike, run over and then given “a hiding”.

The boy said after that incident he was taken back to the stump and told to stand there for an hour.

He also recalled another incident where he claims he was dragged by the hair after being caught jumping on mattresses.

“He dragged me from the cabin and every time I tried to walk, he would boot my a**. I tried to run but he chased me, he tried to kick me and gave us a hiding for jumping on the mattress,” he said.

The boy also said he witnessed another boy who had come to stay with them being abused and saw one of the boys in the care of the father and wife with bruises all over him.

The trial is expected to last three weeks.

Shannon Pitman is a Whangārei based reporter for Open Justice covering courts in the Te Tai Tokerau region. She is of Ngāpuhi/ Ngāti Pūkenga descent and has worked in digital media for the past five years. She joined NZME in 2023.