Child cruelty case sparks investigation

The Office of the Commissioner for Children is investigating why eight children were left with their abusive adoptive parents for five weeks after problems had been flagged.

The children eventually ran away from the couple, a pastor and his wife, who were yesterday sentenced to two years in jail for abuse, neglect and cruelty.

The husband and wife, who have name suppression to protect the identities of the eight adopted and foster children, had at times used belts, brooms and vacuum-cleaner pipes to hit them.

They had pleaded guilty to 22 assault charges, including 16 with a weapon, and a representative charge of child neglect and cruelty. Slavery charges were dropped.

Children's advocate Trish Grant said the problems should have been picked up earlier by Child, Youth and Family Services.

She was concerned that a neglect notification was not properly investigated.

"We want to be reassured that their investigation was comprehensive and in line with their statutory duty under the Child, Youth and Family Act," she said.

"It seems extraordinary there was an increased level of concern of such magnitude that all the children were removed two months later.

"I would have thought because of the signs and numbers and the serious level of abuse or neglect that was occurring there, it might have been picked up earlier."

Social Services Minister Steve Maharey has also asked for a "full briefing" from CYFS.

"It is a big priority of this Government. We don't want frontline services to make mistakes."

But CYFS has said its response was appropriate.

It was notified by Special Education Services of potential neglect but was told there was no immediate risk.

The agency began interviewing the children, who "disclosed a level of neglect."

"At this stage," it said, "there was no evidence of a threat to their physical safety or concrete evidence of extreme neglect which would have justified uplifting the children."

Only after four children ran away and told a relative of regular beatings did CYFS become aware of the physical abuse and remove the other non-birth children.

Meanwhile, three of the couple's birth children are now under CYFS supervision in the care of the couple's family.

The children, aged 6 to 12, were said to be talking about suicide, a Pacific Islands counsellor told the Wellington District Court during the sentencing hearing for the pair.

Spokeswoman Anne-Marie Johnsen said that details of the children's future care were being worked out.

CYFS said that seven of the abuse victims, adopted from Samoa, were with approved caregivers, most of whom were relatives.

The eighth is now an adult.

- NZPA