What happened to Thomas Valva? Former NYPD cop faces trial over death of 8-year-old son

On Wednesday, former NYPD cop Michael Valva went on trial for the cruel murder of his eight-year-old son, Thomas Valva, in 2020. The prosecution presented their opening statements on Wednesday at Riverhead, where they alleged Valva of putting his two sons through harsh abuse that continued for several years.

Thomas, the younger of the two Valva brothers, had died of extreme hypothermia in January 2020. Suffolk County Assistant District Attorney Laura Newcombe elaborated on the torturous life the young boys lived, one that included being starved and forced to sleep on dog pads.

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What led to Thomas Valva's death?

The child abuse apparently started after Michael Valva moved into their Bittersweet Lane house in 2017 with his then-fiancée, Angela Polina.

In text message conversations between the two, Laura Newcombe revealed that they often talked about physical violence. Regarding Thomas Valva and his brother, the ex-cop allegedly once said:

"I will beat them until they bleed. It is the only thing that works."

The prosecutor further claimed that according to school officials, the children would often turn up at school in soiled and dirty clothes and dig through the garbage for food.

On January 17, 2020, Michael Valva had claimed on a call to 911 that his son fell and hit his head, but prosecutors claimed otherwise in Wednesday's murder trial. Valva's version of the incident showed inconsistencies in the timing and nature of the death.

They alleged that Thomas Valva was forced into spending the night locked in a freezing and unheated garage at the Central Moriches home he lived in with his father and his partner. Both Michael Valva and Angela Polina were charged with second-degree murder and endangeringthe welfare of a child.

Valva's defense attorneys refuted the claims made by the prosecution, and instead shifted all the blame to Polina. Attorney Anthony La Pinta said that his client had gone through an emotionally and financially taxing divorce. He said:

"He tried his best to salvage the relationship. Eleven Bittersweet Lane was becoming more bitter by the day."

If convicted of the charges against him, Michael Valva will face up to life in imprisonment. Around 36 witnesses are expected to take the stand in the weeks-long trial, including neighbors.

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Thomas Valva and his brother lived a life of excruciating abuse, claim prosecutors

Eight-year-old Thomas Valva, who was on the Autism spectrum, lived a painful life and died a cruel death. According to school officials, the brothers were so neglected that during lunch that they would resort to digging through the trash can. Laura Newcombe said:

"They were observed at school literally eating crumbs off the floor."

Amanda Wildman, a nanny who was with the family from January 2017 to January 2018, said that the boys would be subjected to verbal abuse frequently. She told the Daily News:

"But the yelling got worse ... The boys were always getting yelled at...If they didn’t finish a sandwich, she would make them sit there until they did — even if they had to go to the bathroom."

Justyna Zubko-Valva, Thomas Valva's mother and Michael's former wife, had pressing concerns regarding her son's wellbeing in the care of his father. Over several months, she documented the alleged abuse carried out by her ex-husband through a Twitter account. On January 7, 2018, she said:

"My children are being harmed and abused for a very long time by their father and his girlfriend, but nobody wants to help them...I don’t even know if my children are still alive at this point."

Thomas Valva's murder had sparked a lot of rage among neighbors and residents who want justice for the little boy.