Overview

• Ayden, a 7-year-old foster child, died on May 21 after enduring severe abuse, malnutrition, and neglect in a state-appointed foster home in Tahiti.
• The foster parents were charged with habitual violence and deprivation leading to death and placed in provisional detention; they face up to 30 years in prison.
• Authorities also charged the couple with habitual violence against Ayden’s siblings, aged 8 and 5, who have been placed in a care facility.
• French Polynesia’s vice-president acknowledged critical failures in social services, citing a lack of foster families and staff as contributing factors.
• The case highlights broader systemic issues, with over one-third of judicial cases in the territory involving intrafamilial violence and inadequate child welfare oversight.