Dad of beaten boy, 10, says his ex ‘let the devil in’ after his son was ‘murdered by his stepdad’

The father of a boy found beaten to death inside his Harlem home has accused his ex of ‘letting the devil in’ after her new boyfriend was charged with his murder. 

Ayden Wolfe, 10, was found unconscious at his family’s fourth-floor apartment in the Saint Nicholas Houses on Saturday afternoon. He was taken to Harlem Hospital where he died shortly afterwards.

His stepfather Ryan Cato, 34, has since been charged with murder. 

Court papers reveal police had been called to the home a day before the boy’s death on Friday after a neighbor heard shouting and banging – but officers left after failing to figure out where the noise was coming from. 

Prosecutors say the neighbor who called 911 on Friday told law enforcement they heard a man screaming: ‘Do you want me to beat your a** too?’

A woman – believed to be Ayden’s mom – was heard saying ‘stop’ as her son moaned. The shouting and banging is said to have lasted for 40 minutes.  

The boy’s mom, 32, is also set to face charges over his death, NBC reports, but it is unclear what she will be accused of. 

Now Ayden’s biological father, Darnell Wolfe, 34, has told The New York Daily News: ‘You let the devil into this house. She made a deal with this devil. It’s impossible that you don’t know what’s happening with our child.’ 

Darnell said his son had ‘charisma’ and ‘just shined’. 

Ayden Wolfe, 10, pictured with his biological dad Darnell, was found unconscious at his family’s fourth-floor apartment in Harlem on Saturday afternoon; he later died at hospital

His stepfather Ryan Cato, 34, has since been charged with murder. Court papers reveal police had been called to the home Friday after a neighbor heard shouting and banging but officers left after failing to figure out where the noise was coming from

The NYPD has said it is now looking into whether the proper procedures were followed by officers who were called out to the home Friday. 

By Saturday police were called again after a neighbor reported hearing a man shouting: ‘You thought yesterday was something? You think this s*** is a game?’

A boy – believed to be Ayden – was heard moaning for a second day running, according to court papers. 

Commissioner Dermot Shea said: ‘To be clear, the person allegedly responsible for Ayden Wolfe’s death is Ryan Cato, who has been charged with murder in the second degree.

‘Nonetheless, I have directed the Office of the Chief of Department to review the police response on Friday to determine if the officers’ actions were consistent with all department procedures and whether our current procedures need to be revised.’ 

Prosecutors say the neighbor who called 911 on Friday told law enforcement they heard a man screaming: ‘Do you want me to beat your a** too?’ A woman – believed to be Ayden’s mom – was heard saying ‘stop’ as her son moaned. The incident is said to have lasted for 40 minutes

Shea added of the Friday call: ‘Two officers responded to the call and checked the fourth floor hallway. The officers went through the hallway, listened at doors, and checked the stairwell for any sound of a domestic dispute in progress. 

‘They remained in the hallway for approximately 12 minutes. They used their department smartphones to read the narrative of the 911 call and confirmed that no apartment number had been given.

‘The officers dialed the callback number related to the 911 call twice, several minutes apart, to determine if the caller could provide what direction the noise had come from but got a voicemail message both times. After not detecting any ongoing dispute or contact with a caller, they resumed patrol.’ 

Cato, right, also has a history of domestic violence arrests, including charges he choked the mother of his own children

Cato was arraigned Monday and is due back in court Friday

It was Cato who is reported to have called police after Ayden became unresponsive; he is said to have told officers Ayden had suffered the injuries outside of the home. 

But security footage shows Ayden had not left the house; he suffered a lacerated spleen, a lacerated liver, a lacerated kidney, rib fractures on both sides of his body and bruising between his toes. 

Assistant District Attorney Nicole Blumberg said: ‘Covered from head to toe with bruises. He had bruises on both arms and hands, both legs, his head and his face, including behind his ears, his chest, his back, and even between the toes. 

‘The child had ribs broken on both sides of his body. Some ribs had multiple fractures.’ 

She said the boy ‘had been inside of that apartment for months without in-person interactions with teachers, counselors or school nurses’ due to the pandemic.  

Cato was arraigned Monday and is due back in court Friday.       

Darnell Wolfe said his son had ‘charisma’ and ‘just shined’. The youngster had suffered a lacerated spleen, a lacerated liver, a lacerated kidney, rib fractures on both sides of his body and bruising between his toes

A woman who claimed to be a cousin of Ayden said the little boy was ‘super smart, super intelligent,’ and wanted to become a professional YouTube gamer

A complaint had been filed against the boy’s mother in 2010 soon after he was born. The complaint involved the city’s child welfare agency and concerned alleged child neglect.  

Cato also has a history of domestic violence arrests, including charges he choked the mother of his own children. 

Neighbors said they had heard about domestic problems involving the family.

‘From the information I have, people knew the family had been through trauma and in a bad situation,’ Sheba Simpson, a neighbor and a candidate for the NYC Council, told News10. 

‘Where are the services and resources that would have mitigated this murder?’ 

In December, Cato was arrested after allegedly choking the mother of his own kids in front of their two children inside their apartment in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. 

On that occasion, Cato was charged with assault, menacing and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child. 

Cato is alleged to have hit the children’s mother in the face several times before putting his hands around her neck and applying pressure.  

Cato was also charged in February with assaulting the driver of a yellow school bus in Brooklyn. 

Ayden Wolfe, 10, was found unconscious at his family’s fourth-floor apartment in the Saint Nicholas Houses, pictured, on Saturday afternoon

A woman who claimed to be a cousin of Ayden said the little boy was ‘super smart, super intelligent,’ and wanted to become a professional YouTube gamer.

‘He was very technologically savvy, well-mannered,’ said the woman who identified herself only as Jennifer A to the New York Times. 

Jennifer said Ayden was his mother’s only child and that she doted on him. ‘They were always together,’ she said.

She said Ayden’s mother had survived brain cancer as a teenager and that it had left her disabled. ‘She’s very protective over him — she was a good mom,’ Jennifer said. ‘I don’t understand what went wrong.’ 

‘I’ve never seen a bruise, fracture, anything on him,’ she added saying that she had never noticed any signs of abuse.