His name is Kaikai
"A child who didn't know how to ask for help from the world lost his life while waiting to be adopted."
In 2023, Kaikai is just a child under two years old. Due to insufficient care capabilities of his original family, he was referred for adoption. He was placed in full day care pending a new family.
On September 1, 2023, Kaikai was handed over to the care of Liu Caixuan, a cooperative nanny arranged by the Child Welfare Alliance. From that day to his Death in the early morning of December 24, 2023, there were a total of 115 days before and after.
What was supposed to be just a transitional period in the child's life ended up being the last 115 days of his life.
Basic information of the case
The last 115 days of life
Kaikai did not enter Liu Caixuan's home because of crime, illness or accident. He is a toddler awaiting adoption arrangements. For a child over one year old, he cannot decide where he wants to go, nor can he choose who will take care of him; his safety can only depend on the adults around him.
On September 1, 2023, Kaikai began to receive full-day care from Liu Caixuan. The court finally found that Liu Caixuan and Liu Ruolin jointly committed acts that obstructed freedom, harmed and abused Kaikai from September 4 to the evening of December 23, 2023.
What happened to him, the court found?
Based on photos, videos, conversation records between the two defendants, medical evaluations, witness statements and relevant documentary evidence, the Taipei District Court’s Citizen Judge’s Court determined that Kaikai suffered long-term abuse during the daycare.
violent injury
The court found that Liu Caixuan had beaten Kaikai with bare hands or objects, pinched and pulled the ears, and had pushed the child from behind and made it hit the ground; Liu Ruolin was also found to have scratched Kaikai's neck in an unknown way.
Binding and restricting movement
Kaikai was once tied up with a towel, blindfolded with a mask, and restricted from moving. The two also tied Kaikai and put it in a bucket to restrict his freedom of movement.
Standing for a long time and improper punishment
The court found that Kaikai had been forced to stand naked wearing only a diaper, and was also forced to lie on the ground in a specific posture and was not allowed to change positions at will.
Cold bathing and improper diet
The court found that Liu Caixuan had bathed the young child with cold water and fed overnight food in the toilet that was insufficient for daily nutritional needs. As time passed, his body gradually became thinner and weaker.
Knowing that the child was getting weaker and weaker, he still did not take the initiative to send him to the hospital
The verdict pointed out that the two defendants saw that Kaikai was getting thinner and had external injuries on his body, but they still did not take the initiative to take him to receive appropriate medical treatment.
At least 42 abusive injuries
When Kaikai died, the medical and identification results gradually revealed everything he experienced during his lifetime. The court found that Kaikai had at least 42 abusive injuries all over his body when he died. He also suffered from long-term malnutrition and physical weakness, and suffered from depression due to long-term physical injuries and mental abuse.
These injuries were not a single incident, but were determined by the court to be the result of repeated, long-term man-made violence and abuse.
On December 23, 2023, he lasted until the last night
On the evening of December 23, 2023, Kaikai began to experience obvious abnormalities such as vomiting and reduced activity, and was subsequently sent to the hospital for rescue.
In the early morning of December 24, 2023, Kaikai died of hypovolemic shock. The court found that his long-term malnutrition, physical weakness and systemic abuse injuries ultimately caused insufficient blood perfusion of tissue cells and caused hypovolemic shock.
He didn't wait until someone actually took him away from the dangerous situation.
Liu Caixuan｜Main caregiver, professional qualified nanny
Liu Caixuan is the main caregiver during the full-day care. The court pointed out that she was a professionally qualified nanny who was entrusted with the care of young children and should have fulfilled her professional care obligations and promoted the child's sound physical and mental development.
However, the court found that she knew that Ji Zai was young, unable to resist, and that he was a child in full-day care and waiting to be adopted, but she still violently abused him and restricted his freedom for a long time. The court found in the sentencing reasons that his criminal motive involved "torture for pleasure."
Liu Ruolin is not "just a sister" | Court found: co-culprit
Liu Ruolin was not the main nanny in name, but the court did not accept the argument that she was just a bystander. The judgment pointed out that the daily lives of Liu Ruolin and Kaikai were highly overlapping. She had a background in childcare and was a professional nanny, and she actually assisted Liu Caixuan in taking care of Kaikai.
Based on the conversations, photos and videos between the two, the court found that Liu Ruolin not only knew that Liu Caixuan was committing violence and abuse on her children, but also did not stop it; on the contrary, she had actively tracked, promoted, and catered to related abuses, and provided advice on binding, punishment, and injury. In addition, the court found that she had participated in behaviors such as scratching the neck of the chopsticks and placing the chopsticks in a bucket to restrict freedom of movement.
Therefore, the court found that there was common criminal intent and shared behavior between Liu Ruolin and Liu Caixuan. They were not simply "knowing but not stopping", but they were joint principal offenders.
Two professional nannies turned out to be the greatest danger to the children
One of the unacceptable aspects of this case is that neither defendant was ignorant of the care of young children. They have relevant care expertise and know what a one-year-old child needs. They should also know what injuries are abnormal and that a child who is losing weight rapidly and has multiple injuries on his body needs immediate medical attention.
However, the court ultimately found that instead of protecting the child, they jointly became adults who harmed him.
Judicial Proceedings
It was found that both defendants constituted adults who jointly committed the crime of interfering with the freedom of children and torturing them causing Death. Liu Caixuan was sentenced to life imprisonment and deprived of civil rights for life; Liu Ruolin was sentenced to 18 years in prison.
The High Court held that there were no errors in the judgment of evidence and sentencing by the first-instance Citizen Judge panel that should be revoked, and rejected the appeal and upheld the original verdict.
The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal. Liu Caixuan was sentenced to life imprisonment and deprived of civil rights for life; Liu Ruolin was sentenced to 18 years in prison and the entire case was settled.
The verdict is over, but the Kaikai case is not.
Just because two of the direct abusers received criminal sanctions does not mean that all questions have been answered. Jichi was a child who was receiving formal adoption services. He had childcare arrangements, visits, and was in a child welfare system that should theoretically have a supervisory function, but he still died in this protection system.
- Why didn't anyone find out in time?
- Who should take action when a child appears unusual?
- If the visit is just to complete a record sheet, can it really protect the child?
- When a child does not have his parents by his side every day, who will really protect his rights?
- What level of supervision should young children receive during the transition from adoption to adoption?
This is not a single nanny issue
If the kidnapping case is only understood as "an encounter with two bad nannies," then the warning message left by this child may soon be forgotten again. The Criminal Court has dealt with the direct criminal responsibility of Liu Caixuan and Liu Ruolin, but the case still requires society to re-examine the transitional care of adopted children, cooperative nanny management, visits and notifications, tracking of abnormal children, agency supervision and cross-system risk escalation mechanisms.
The relevant systems and the legal responsibilities of other personnel belong to different procedures and should not be confused with the confirmed criminal facts of Liu Caixuan and Liu Ruolin; however, these issues are worthy of continued investigation.
Why do we need to record these 115 days?
Kaikai could no longer tell us personally what he experienced during those 115 days. Everything we know today can only be pieced together piece by piece from medical records, photos, videos, message records, witness statements and court decisions.
The content is heavy. But choosing to forget will not make the tragedy disappear. We are recording this case not for the sake of curiosity, nor to repeatedly show the harm done to the children.
Every bruise that was once ignored could be a cry for help. Every unreasonable weight loss deserves questioning. Every time “the nanny says it’s okay” should not replace professional judgment. At every visit, you should actually see your child.
The real questions left by the Kaikai case
Justice can convict a person, but justice cannot bring a child back. The sentence can be determined, but whether the system is truly changed still requires continued supervision by society as a whole.
Children cannot write love letters by themselves. The child will not call the police on his own. A one-year-old can't even finish saying, "Someone is hurting me."
Therefore, adults have a greater responsibility to see those unspoken distress signals from changes in their body, emotions, weight, expressions and behaviors.
Kaikai Case | Judicial Timeline
Kaikai entered Liu Caixuan's home to receive full-day care.
The court found that Liu Caixuan and Liu Ruolin jointly abused, harmed and restricted the child’s freedom of movement.
Kaikai died of hypovolemic shock.
Liu Caixuan was sentenced to life imprisonment and deprived of civil rights for life; Liu Ruolin was sentenced to 18 years.
The appeal was dismissed and the original judgment was upheld.
The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal and the entire case was settled.
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I hope the next child will be seen in time
He might have gone to kindergarten, he might have carried a schoolbag to school for the first time, he would have his favorite cartoons and toys, he would have grown up and made friends. One day, you may have places you want to go and things you want to do.
But all this will always stop on December 24, 2023.
But we can decide whether we will miss the next time a child sends out a distress call.
It also leaves responsibility for the system
About this topic
The "Child Protection Action Alliance" continues to sort out judicial decisions, court hearing records, child protection systems and follow-up responsibility tracking related to the Kaikai case. We believe that the purpose of case records is not to stay angry, but to find out from every tragedy: Which link failed? Which warning signal was missed? How to keep the child alive next time?
Public Sources
This page is organized based on public court judgment information, Judicial Yuan press releases and public reports. Key references include:
- Judicial Yuan｜Taiwan Taipei District Court Press Release on the 113th National Trial Case No. 1
- Judicial Yuan | Taiwan Taipei District Court 114 Annual Litigation No. 51 Press Release
- Central News Agency | The second instance rejected the appeal and upheld the original verdict
- Central News Agency | The Supreme Court rejected the appeal and settled the entire case
Last updated: August 10, 2026
© Child Protection Action Alliance｜Case Tracking and Children’s Rights Initiative