Testimony from convicted Calgary father of teen in malnourishment death delayed until June

CALGARY — A man convicted in the death of his malnourished son who died of sepsis and untreated diabetes will have to wait months for his chance to take the stand at an Alberta fatality inquiry.

Alexandru Radita was 15 and weighed 37 pounds when he was brought to a Calgary hospital in May 2013. His parents, Emil and Rodica Radita, were found guilty in 2017 of first-degree murder.

Emil Radita has been watching the proceeding from prison and has been asking questions throughout. He intends to testify, but the inquiry has been adjourned until June while the court decides if it wants to call one more witness.

He did not testify at his trial.

Court heard the boy was hospitalized twice due to malnutrition and taken into foster care before later being returned to his parents, who moved to Calgary in 2008. They refused to accept the boy had diabetes when he was initially diagnosed in British Columbia with the disease in 2000, the trial heard.