This smiling boy who was fatally stabbed in the throat by his estranged dad after a court ordered he spend the New Year with him had begged his mum and grandparents not to send him, but his family had no choice.

The claims by the family come as it was revealed that authorities have started a probe as to why the violent man was allowed to look after the youngster, especially as he was already under investigation for another attempted stabbing.

Warehouseman Davide Paitoni, 40, was under house arrest for trying to stab his work colleague with a knife outside their workplace in the comune of Azzate in the Italian province of Varese on 26th November.

Yet that did not stop a judge from ruling that the man’s seven-year-old son, who was living with his mum, could spend New Year’s Eve with him.

The tragic boy’s grandfather has now told Il Corriere della Sera Milano: “The little boy didn’t want to go. We made a mistake in taking him to his dad. But he had the judge’s permission . . .”

The boy was killed when he was stabbed in the throat when he was alone with his dad at home in the comune of Morazzone, also in Varese Province. It is not currently clear if the boy had been drugged beforehand.

After stabbing the youngster, the dad hid his body in the wardrobe of the property owned by his father Renato Paitoni.

The suspected killer later left the house after sending an audio message to his own father saying: “Do not open the bedroom wardrobe.”

The suspect was in the process of separating from the boy’s mother, and it is believed he killed their son partly as a form of revenge for the separation, in addition to her having reported him to the police for past incidents of domestic violence.

He would go on to injure the woman again after he turned up at her parents’ house, where the mum and son were temporarily living, in the comune of Gazzada Schianno, also in Varese Province, on New Year’s Day, ostensibly to return the youngster.

However, he turned up empty-handed, having already allegedly killed the youngster, and proceeded to stab his estranged wife, 36, multiple times, injuring her but fortunately not endangering her life, according to reports.

He fled the scene and went on to send his estranged wife two voice messages in which he falsely told her: “Daniele is safe. I attacked you to punish you because you ruined my life, and because you wanted to take my son away from me.”

The suspect was finally arrested by military officers following a car chase and then on foot through the woods in the comune of Viggiu, also in Varese Province, on 2nd January. He is reported to have shouted “Shoot me!” while holding a knife in his hand when he was cornered.

The mum had reported her then-husband to the police for domestic abuse on two occasions during their time together. According to reports, they had only been living together for a short while before the woman decided to take her son and move in with her parents.

The Ministry of Justice has now requested an inquiry into why judge Anna Giorgetti allowed the boy to spend New Year’s Eve at his dad’s house, given that he was under house arrest for attempted murder and given the past complaints of domestic abuse.

Giorgetti had noted at the time that the complaints against him were “pending charges that could be resolved favourably for the suspect”.

Daniele’s funeral will take place in Gazzada Schianno on 7th January.