16-month-old slammed against wall, murder trial told

A 16-month-old child was shaken violently and slammed against a wall making his head swell like a balloon, a jury was told today at the start of the trial of the man charged with the toddler's murder.

Fiji-born Abhinesh Sharma, 37, a plumber, appeared in the High Court at Auckland today, charged with the murder of Sachin Dhani, who died at Auckland's Starship Hospital on June 21 2007 of head injuries.

The jury, of eight men and four women, heard Sharma plead not guilty to the charge of murder.

Opening the crown case, prosecutor Phil Hamlin told the court the Dhani and Sharma families were close, as the wives were sisters, and both families had moved to New Zealand from Fiji in 2006.

The Dhani family lived in Remuera and had a cleaning business, and the Sharma family often helped with babysitting in the evenings when they were out working.

Mr Hamlin said that on June 19 2007, Sharma was babysitting his nephew Sachin, along with his siblings, a five-year-old girl and a three-year-old boy. Sharma and his wife Dorin also have five-year-old twins.

Mr Hamlin said Sharma became frustrated and angry with Sachin.

"He picked him up and shook him violently. He slammed him against the wall and floor. His body went floppy, and his head became swollen like a balloon. He rapidly lost consciousness, and he never recovered from his fatal injuries," he said.

Mr Hamlin said Sachin died two days later in Starship Hospital.

He told the jury they had to decide whether Sharma intended to kill Sachin when he slammed him against the floor and wall.

Mr Hamlin said Sachin was a happy and healthy child, who was beginning to take a few steps on his own and saying a few words.

Sometime between 7pm and 8.06pm on June 19 2007, Sachin suffered irreversible head injuries.

Sharma made a telephone call at 8.06pm to Mrs Dani to tell her Sachin was unwell, and insisted that she came home.

When Mr and Mrs Dani arrived at Sharma's address in Mt Wellington, they saw Sachin was not responsive or reactive and he was floppy. They all got into the car and headed to Ascot Hospital, the nearest hospital to that address.

On the way to the hospital, they were stopped by the police because of erratic driving. When they explained where they were going, they were taken to the hospital by police car, while Sharma followed behind with the children.

Doctors at Ascot Hospital found a damaged 10cm diameter area at the back of the boy's head.

Sachin was transferred to Starship Hospital where he had surgery to relieve the pressure on his skull.

He was placed on life support, but it was clear there was no brain activity.

"The boy was effectively brain dead and there was nothing more they could do," Mr Hamlin said.

On June 21 2007 his life support was turned off and he died shortly after.

Mr Hamlin said medical professionals who dealt with Sachin said his brain tissue had become very swollen and soft, and his brain had moved considerably because of the swelling.

He said the brain had moved down towards the brain stem, causing coma which eventually lead to death.

Sachin also suffered external haemorrhaging to both retinas, with ruptures to his eye and optic nerve, which showed the force used to cause the damage, Mr Hamlin said.

At the hospital, Sharma suggested the child had fallen off a couch and hit his head on a coffee table.

"All the injuries came within seconds of each other, and would not have been caused by the child falling and hitting his head," Mr Hamlin said.

The jury was shown photographs and were told they would be hearing from 50 witnesses throughout the trial.

- NZPA