Boarder admits horrific abuse of toddler

Harley Mac Wharewera

A Whakatane man yesterday admitted forcing a toddler to eat dog faeces and beating him around the head with a roll of wallpaper because he was annoyed by the sound of his crying.

Harley Mac Wharewera admitted four charges relating to almost two months of assaults on the boy, who is aged two years and nine months.

Wharewera had earlier pleaded not guilty to the abuse.

Wharewera, 19, was sporting two black eyes from his time in Waikeria Prison where he was being held on remand, when escorted from court cells for his appearance at the Whakatane District Court.

The court heard how he twice forced the boy to eat dog faeces and beat him around the head with a roll of wallpaper.

Wharewera had told police he hit the boy because "he was doing that 'piss me off' sort of crying that he just wouldn't stop".

Wharewera said he had "lost control" and felt "pretty stink" about what he had done.

The boy suffered extreme swelling and bruising to the head, a large skull fracture and other injuries.

The assault came after frequent physical abuse of the boy by Wharewera and another man in August and September.

Judge Christopher Harding convicted Wharewera of intent to cause grievous bodily harm, which carries a maximum jail term of 14 years, and injuring with intent, which carries a penalty of five years.

Wharewera was jointly convicted with Kane Jeremy Tawa of wilful ill-treatment of a child and assault of a child.

Tawa, 23, has pleaded guilty to the charges, and the two will be sentenced on November 9.

The court heard how they assaulted the toddler while boarding with him and his mother at a house in Whakatane.

Prosecuting sergeant Peter Rankin said the abuse caused the boy to become terrified of the men and cry out for his mother.

She has pleaded not guilty to a charge of permitting the wilful ill-treatment of a child and was remanded on bail for a pre-trial hearing when she appeared yesterday.

Mr Rankin said the two men assaulted the boy in a room they called "the cell" or "jail".

Wharewera also locked the boy in a small cupboard and threatened him with assault if he did not eat dog faeces.

The boy complied.

On another occasion, Wharewera forced the boy to eat faeces dipped in tomato sauce, causing him to vomit.

On September 21, the toddler was left alone with Wharewera, who became frustrated with his crying and flew into a rage.

Wharewera took a roll of wallpaper weighing about a kilogram and wrapped a newspaper around it.

"He then took a full swing with the wallpaper roll and hit [the boy] hard about the head three times," Mr Rankin said.

The boy's mother arrived and found him unresponsive.

The boy was rushed to Whakatane Hospital, where a paediatrician estimated that more than a third of his blood had gone into his scalp and surrounding areas.

The paediatrician said it was lucky the boy did not die.

The boy was released from hospital on September 30 into the care of Child, Youth and Family. He is making a good recovery.