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The 12-year-old reportedly weighed the same as a small toddler at the time of her death.
11:06, Tue, Mar 10, 2026 Updated: 11:07, Tue, Mar 10, 2026
Tiffani Scholten was found unresponsive at her home (Image: findagrave.com)
A disabled girl was allegedly "kept in a wardrobe" by her stepfather before she passed away. A court was told how 12-year-old Tiffani Scholten weighed the same as a small toddler at the time of her death in April 2022.
She had reportedly not seen a doctor since 2019 and was found unresponsive at her home in the Gold Coast, Australia. Police arrested Tiffani's mother, Carrissa Kaye Scholten, 38, as well as her former partner Aaron Paul Richardson, 39, on suspicion of her murder. The pair have since been charged, with Police Inspector Paul Fletcher saying evidence shows the care for Tiffani was "insufficient" and "directly related to her death". They are yet to enter pleas but Richardson has been refused bail.
As reported by news.com.au, Tiffani, who reportedly weighed just 7.3kg at the time of her death, lived with complex medical conditions, including Rett-type syndrome. The severe neurodevelopmental disorder affected her brain development and impacted her weight gain.
However, prosecutors claim her death was caused by other means, including her treatment at the hands of her parents. During Richardson's bail hearing at Brisbane Crown Court, prosecutor Julie Aylward said the 12-year-old was in the "second percentile for her age" in terms of weight.
She continued: "That being said, if that (pattern) continued, at the age she was when she died, she would have been doubled the weight that she actually was. In fact, when she died, she was in the second percentile for a two-year-old child.
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Tiffani weighed just 7.3kg at the time of her death (Image: findagrave.com)
"This is a child that was in their wardrobe … it was very clear this was a child that needed assistance, and neither medical treatment was sought nor was she provided with food.”
Ms Aylward added: "While Tiffani did have complex issues, her death, it seems clear (from medical evidence), was from severe malnutrition. This was not just a case of her not being fed over a couple of days. It was a prolonged and callous course of conduct."
Tiffani's mother was her primary carer but Richardson also played a key role. According to Ms Aylward, the 39-year-old identified himself as a caregiver to police and accepted that he provided care alongside her mother.
Richardson has already spent nine months behind bars following Tiffani's death for unrelated offending. He was previously convicted of drug trafficking and other offences. The prosecution said he was a risk of committing further domestic violence offences as well as interfering with witnesses.
Richardson was denied bail at Brisbane Crown Court (Image: Getty)
Meanwhile, David Funch, defending, said: It is a live, very real issue. There is fairly complex medical evidence that is anticipated to be led by the Crown at trial and also by the defence. There is a very real risk of an excess of three years pre-trial custody."
He added: "It is alleged that my client owed a duty to this child who suffered from what appears to be an ill-defined and fairly novel medical condition. Relevant to that is the role my client played in the family unit.
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"It seems, on the Crown’s evidence, that (the mother) was the primary caregiver. It is certainly appears to be a stronger case against the primary caregiver, the co-accused mother, … but then again there is the issue of the neurological degenerative disorder that is in play in this case."
Supreme Court Justice Sean Cooper refused Richardson bail. He said: "I am ultimately not persuaded that the risk of the applicant interfering with witnesses in particular, and obstructing the course of justice can be reduced to an acceptable level."
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