Nia Glassie's aunt, Louise Kuka, gave evidence in the High Court at Rotorua today in the trial of five people accused of causing the toddler's death.
Three-year-old Nia died from massive bleeding between her skull and brain at Starship Hospital on August 3 2007, 12 days after being
taken to Rotorua Hospital in a coma.
Nia's mother, Lisa Kuka, 35, her partner at the time Wiremu Curtis, 18, his brother Michael Curtis, 21, his partner Oriwa Kemp, 18 and Nia's cousin Michael Pearson are on trial before Justice Judith Potter and a jury of 11.
It is alleged the Curtis brothers kicked the toddler in the head on July 20, 2007, inflicting the fatal injuries.
Kuka's sister, Louise Kuka, told the court that when she was at Nia's Rotorua home on July 20, Nia was well although she complained of having a headache.
The next day when she went to pick up her son from the address, she was told Nia hadn't woken that day.
"When I asked her what was wrong, (Lisa) said Nia had the flu."
She took the child, who appeared to be in a deep sleep, home with her and early the next morning Nia was frothing at the mouth.
She picked up Lisa Kuka and took her and the child to hospital.
Kuka's older brother, Eugene Kuka, told the court when he questioned his sister at Starship Hospital she told him Nia "might have been abused".
ESR forensic scientist Jayshree Patel, who also gave evidence at the trial, said blood found on some items of clothing, including the t-shirt Nia wore to hospital, came from Nia.
The DNA found was one in 10,000 million times more likely to have been Nia's.
Now in its third week, the trial is expected to take four weeks.
- NZPA
