Recently, a netizen from Anyang, Henan Province, posted on social media claiming that her 14-year-old nephew was “long-term abused by his father and stepmother,” and tragically passed away during the Mid-Autumn Festival in 2025 due to liver necrosis, sepsis, and other complications, attracting attention.
According to reports from multiple media outlets including Benliu News on January 21, Ms. Zhang, the netizen, introduced that her nephew, Zhang Shen (pseudonym), was born in 2012. When he was six months old, his mother left home and never returned. His father was a truck driver who was often away from home, so Zhang Shen was raised by his grandmother, aunt, and others.
In 2020, Zhang Shen’s father met his current wife and quickly got married. In the second half of 2021, Zhang Shen’s father took him, who was 9 years old, away. Several months later, when Zhang Shen was seen by Ms. Zhang on the road, she noticed obvious bruises on the child’s face. What saddened her even more was one day when Zhang Shen ran to her house after being beaten, and as he undressed to bathe, she saw bruises all over his body. Photos and videos provided by Ms. Zhang showed bruises around Zhang Shen’s eyes, swollen arms, and bruises of different shades on his back.
Subsequently, Ms. Zhang repeatedly asked her brother (Zhang Shen’s biological father) to let her raise Zhang Shen, but her requests were rejected. “My mom will give the child money, and if the child lives with me, my brother will lose this source of income,” Ms. Zhang said.
In the battle for custody of the child, the relationship between Ms. Zhang and her brother deteriorated continuously. Zhang Shen’s father began to prohibit the child from associating with Ms. Zhang and even stopped Zhang Shen from going to school. Since then, Ms. Zhang never saw her nephew again. It wasn’t until November 13, 2025, that Ms. Zhang learned of Zhang Shen’s unfortunate passing on the Mid-Autumn Festival of that year.
According to the autopsy report issued by the police, the 14-year-old Zhang Shen, who was only 1.4 meters tall, had suffered from liver necrosis, pulmonary hemorrhage, cerebral hemorrhage, among other injuries. His body had reached a state of sepsis, and he was found wearing a diaper when he died.
A police officer told Ms. Zhang that when Zhang Shen passed away, his abdomen was so sunken that it touched his back, his stomach was empty, and his ribs were protruding high, indicating long-term abuse and denial of food.
Ms. Zhang learned that the last words Zhang Shen uttered before his death were a plea to his stepmother to “please give me a glass of water to drink.” However, Zhang Shen’s father and stepmother only reported to the police and surrendered themselves after the child’s body had stiffened.
Ms. Zhang stated that her brother placed all the blame on himself, claiming that he accidentally killed the child while disciplining him, which had nothing to do with his current wife. However, she suspected that the stepmother was also involved in the abuse.
“Things were fine before; it was only after he married this woman (Li Mou Xia) that the child was taken back and within two months, he was beaten like that,” she expressed. The child had been tormented by the two of them, while the stepmother had been evading responsibility, which prompted her to speak out online.
Following the exposure of the incident, it sparked attention online. That night, the Long’an District Police in Anyang, Henan, announced that on October 5, 2025, a criminal case occurred in a certain community in the district, and the victim, Zhang Mou Mou, died. After the incident, Zhang Mou (father of Zhang Mou Mou) turned himself in and has been subjected to criminal coercive measures.
The announcement stated that on January 20, after the identification report on Zhang Mou Mou’s cause of death was released, Li Mou Mou (stepmother of Zhang Mou Mou) was under heavy suspicion of committing a crime and was now under police control, while the case is under further investigation.
In response, Ms. Zhang stated that her demand is strict punishment for the perpetrators and justice for the child. “The child has been tormented too severely; they must be severely punished.”