A 24-year-old father has faced a north Queensland court for the alleged torture and murder of his five-year-old son.
The boy died on Monday from “catastrophic injuries” he received in a “brutal assault” about six days earlier in Yarrabah – a coastal Indigenous community of about 2,500 people near Cairns – Det Insp Kevin Goan alleged in a press conference on Wednesday.
He alleged there was evidence the boy had been assaulted “over a protracted period” of time, but police were not aware of the alleged abuse until an ambulance was called to the house last Tuesday.
The young boy died of injuries sustained “on or about 16 August”, he said.
Goan alleged the father used “an implement” to cause “significant injuries” to his son.
“Clearly they’re catastrophic injuries … certainly they were confronting,” he said.
“Confronting to the investigators that are dealing with this matter – and confronting for the family to have to deal with.”
No one else is being investigated for his death.
The man is facing charges of murder, grievous bodily harm, torture and two counts each of assault occasioning bodily harm whilst armed and assault occasioning bodily harm.
He appeared before the Cairns magistrates court on Wednesday and was remanded to appear before the Yarrabah magistrates court on 7 September.
