Metro

Boy beaten to death with broomstick was abused for months


Child abuse victim Zymere Perkins was beaten repeatedly over the course of months, according to not-yet-released autopsy results shared with The Post on the murdered 6-year-old Harlem boy.

The apparent murder weapon, a broomstick, has been recovered — cut into pieces — from the basement trash compactor in the boy’s West 135th Street building, a source said, along with his feces-stained T-shirt.

The boy’s immediate cause of death Monday appears to be beatings with the broomstick, prompted by his defecating in an ice bucket in the apartment, sources said.

But multiple old bruises also covered the boy’s head and body, consistent with his being struck by different objects over time, according to a source familiar with an autopsy performed Tuesday.

Several rib fractures were in different stages of healing, showing that he had suffered a sickening sequence of bone-breaking blows.

The boy’s thymus, an organ vital to a child’s immune system, had atrophied to the point of disappearing, the source said — a possible sign of significant, long-term stress.

Coroners were still determining the time frame for the injuries, a source said.

But investigators believe preliminarily that the severest beatings began two months ago, when the boy and his mother moved out of a homeless shelter and in with her boyfriend.

Mom Geraldine Perkins, 26, and her boyfriend, Rysheim Smith, 42, were both charged Wednesday with misdemeanor child endangerment at Manhattan Criminal Court, where they were ordered held in lieu of bail.

The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office said charges were expected to be upgraded pending a report from the medical examiner.

The boyfriend told police he was not at home when the boy was beaten, and then he asked for a lawyer and provided no additional statement, a source said.

The mother told cops she took blame only for failing to stop the assault on the boy — and she’s blaming the boyfriend.

Investigators are trying to piece together what happened inside their apartment, but can only work during the day because there is no electricity, a source said.

Mayor Bill de Blasio conceded Wednesday that the city dropped the ball on the boy, whose mother was the subject of five abuse allegations since 2010.

“What I think I can safely say is that there were warning signs,” the mayor said at an unrelated press conference in Brooklyn.

“They were clearly looked at by a variety of agencies. How that didn’t lead to a different outcome is what I don’t understand, and I find it an unacceptable outcome. And I’m going to demand answers from everyone involved.”

De Blasio also ordered a Department of Investigation probe into the city’s failures.

The mayor cited the infamous case of Nixzmary Brown — the 7-year-old girl beaten to death by her stepfather in 2006 in Bedford-Stuyvesant despite previous multiple abuse allegations.

“It reminds me of Nixzmary Brown, and that’s what is troubling to me,” de Blasio said.

Major reforms were ordered in the wake of that murder, but they have fallen far short of expectations.

In May, the DOI issued a blistering report that found that 16 percent of kids who ACS determined had been abused or neglected had within a year been abused or ­neglected again.

Zymere’s mother has told police it was Smith who did the beating — and who then held an unresponsive Zymere under running water in the shower before laying down the boy’s limp body and leaving the apartment, sources said.

Even seasoned cops were sickened by the boy’s death.

“This is par for the course,” said one law enforcement source involved in the case. “It seems like every time you turn around, the city is dropping the ball on one of these cases. Here you have another horrifying death of a child where Child Services looked into the case.”

Sources told The Post that as recently as April, officials at Zymere’s school alerted authorities that he had suspicious bruises and scratches on his legs.

There were four prior reports of maltreatment, including three that were confirmed in June, August and February, The Post has learned.

“The death of any child is an unspeakable tragedy — even more so if the city was in a position to intervene,” said Comptroller Scott Stringer. “The brutal death of Zymere Perkins is an indictment of ACS and part of a long and disturbing pattern.”

Stringer added, “Our office released an audit in June that revealed the agency’s failure to properly oversee its investigations and follow up on allegations of child abuse. These shortcomings dangerously increase the risk to thousands of New York City’s most vulnerable children. The city must take responsibility and ensure that this never happens again. No child should have to spend a single night in an unsafe home — and it’s government’s job to make sure that doesn’t occur.”

Rysheim Smith (right) and Geraldine Perkins at their arraignments Wednesday.Alec Tabak/Pool photo; Robert Mecea/Pool photo

Outside the apartment building Wednesday night, mourners placed candles and balloons of Spider-Man and Iron Man, which residents said were Zymere’s favorite superhero characters.

Residents were furious that the city failed to intervene despite multiple warnings.

“This was an ACS situation. Kids don’t do nothing,” said Fernanda Burton, 54, a six-year resident in the building.

“Of course the city messed up. He even didn’t get to live. Everyone should be accountable. It’s just so sad,” she said. “Children didn’t ask to come here, but when they’re here, you should love them.”

Mercedes Traviesa, 64, said she has lived in the neighborhood for decades.

“The city didn’t do enough,” she said. “ACS should have took him and now he’s dead. The mayor could have done more. I’m a mom and grandmother. It’s sad to see this happen.”

Neighbor Belki Martinez, 47, agreed.

“He should have been a priority,” she said. “City officials should have paid close attention. I never thought the parents would do that. Kids are a pain sometimes, but you should love them.”

Additional reporting by Larry Celona, Yoav Gonen, Keldy Ortiz and Laura Italiano