DES MOINES (AP) — Police are investigating the case of a 2-year-old boy who was severely burned while in the care of his father’s girlfriend.
Des Moines television station KCCI says police aren’t sure how Tavion Moore was burned, but authorities say there is little chance his burns were an accident.
Tavion was treated in Iowa City for second- and third-degree burns on his hands after the incident in a Des Moines home on Sunday. Doctors say the burns are consistent with scalding water or oil. They were so severe that skin was falling off the toddler’s hand.
The 19-year-old girlfriend told authorities that Tavion was burned in an accident involving a dishwasher.
Des Moines Sgt. Steve Woody says it’s unlikely that the toddler burned himself, and the injuries show evidence of abuse.