- Anthony Siliveinusi Niu, 27, charged with aggravated child abuse in Kearns.
- Niu allegedly beat his 16-year-old foster son until he lost consciousness.
- Prosecutors request Niu be held without bail citing egregious and concerning behavior.
KEARNS — A foster parent in Kearns is accused of beating and threatening a teen boy in his care.
Anthony Siliveinusi Niu, 27, was charged Friday in 3rd District Court with aggravated child abuse, a first-degree felony.
"A foster parent is supposed to be the protector of vulnerable children who have already had a tough life. The foster parent in this case, instead of providing a safe environment and loving home, verbally and physically assaulted the victim to the point that he lost consciousness, then threatened to kill him," prosecutors wrote in charging documents.
In June, Unified police were called to investigate a report that a 16-year-old boy was "physically and mentally assaulted" by his foster parent, the charges state. The boy told investigators that after being yelled at by Niu, he tried to leave the house, and Niu told him to "go cry to your (expletive) mom like you always do" and also called him an (expletive) "wimp" and "weak," according to charging documents.
As the boy tried to walk away, Niu tackled him, "slammed him to the ground" and began "punching and slapping him and 'pounding his face into the ground and spitting on him,'" the teen told police, according to the charges. "Niu then strangled him and slammed his face into the dirt."
The boy said he "blacked out a few times" and claimed that while Niu was "beating him up," he whispered that "he would kill him," charging documents state.
A neighbor went outside to get Niu off the teen, who then ran off.
"The assault upon the victim was captured on video and shows (Niu) repeatedly torquing the victim's head and neck, creating a substantial likelihood of serious bodily injury. While (he) has no known criminal history, his actions in this matter are egregious and concerning," prosecutors wrote in their charges while requesting that he be held in the Salt Lake County Jail without the possibility of posting bail pending trial.
"(Niu) in this matter, was a foster parent to the victim. During an argument with the victim, (he) physically assaulted the victim by punching him multiple times, pushing his head into the ground, and strangling him," the charges state. "A foster parent is defined as a person temporarily serving as a parent for a child who has lost or been removed from a parent's care and who is not the person's own biological child."
