Boris wrote on May 8
th, 2026 at 2:42pm:
NT infant allegedly ‘sexually assaulted at 25 days’
NT Children and Families Minister Robyn Cahill told the Territory parliament on Thursday there would be an external and independent review of the department responsible for child removals. Picture: Pema T
A six-week-old baby rushed to a Darwin hospital this week was allegedly sexually assaulted at less than 25 days old, but the infant was allowed to remain with its family despite multiple separate reports of abuse being made within three weeks.
In details that will heap further pressure on the already under-fire NT Department of Children and Families, The Australian can reveal multiple agencies made reports about the welfare of the infant who was flown from a remote Indigenous community to the Royal Darwin Hospital with “suspicious” head injuries this week.
Authorities are investigating reports of deliberately inflicted injuries to the baby’s genitals made on April 13 and another injury was reported on April 17. However, the department took no action and allowed the child to remain with the family.
A third notification about the child’s wellbeing was made on May 3.
The Northern Territory Police is now investigating allegations relating to “an infant who had suffered unexplained physical injuries”.
“The NTPF can confirm that it is investigating after family attended a remote Roper Gulf Region community clinic with an infant who had suffered unexplained physical injuries,” a police statement read.
“The injuries may have occurred between April 13, 2026 and May 3, 2026. Police received a mandatory report and an investigation is under way.”
Police said in their statement the child’s injuries were “not life-threatening”, that no arrests had been made and the cause of the injuries were “currently unknown”.
The baby is now the subject of a provisional protection order.
Three child protection case workers were suspended from their roles at the Northern Territory’s Department of Children and Families on Wednesday over the death of Sharon Granites, who was allegedly kidnapped and murdered at an Alice Springs town camp.
Sharon Granites had been the subject of six child protection notices before she was allegedly taken and killed.
NT Children and Families Minister Robyn Cahill told the territory parliament on Thursday there would be an external and independent review of the department responsible for child removals. This would be broad-ranging and an examination of the entire child protection system in the NT, not just Sharon Granites’s case.
Ms Cahill said this review was necessary “to see if we can do things better, to make sure that the people who are working in this area have the resources that they need, that they understand what their obligations are”.
Such reviews can cause deep angst in the public sector. For example, an independent review of NSW’s child protection practices examined the case files of 1144 Indigenous children including the actions or inactions of the case workers.
The Family is Culture report concluded in 2019 that NSW’s child protection department did not intervene early enough, lacked leadership, accountability, transparency and oversighthttps://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/nt-infant-sexually-assaulted-at...No doubt most of them are aborigyne-identifying DEI hires.
Also, Family is Culture - there's the problem.