Indiana Man Arrested After 18-Month-Old Boy Dies With Head Injury, ‘Large Severe Burn’ On His Face, Police Say

An Indiana man was taken into custody after an 18-month-old boy in his care died after he was admitted to the hospital suffering severe injuries, authorities said.

On the morning of Sept. 27, the child’s mother took her unresponsive son to Deaconess Hospitalin Evansville, where he was later pronounced dead.

According to an affidavit obtained by the Evansville Courier & Press, the baby had “a large severe burn on the left side of his face" as well as “a severe head injury.”

Medical staff believe the boy may have been dead for hours before arriving at the hospital, police said.

The following day, officers arrested 21-year-old Tavion Cobb, who now faces possible charges of murder, two counts of neglect resulting in death, and failing to appear for a warrant.

The mother told investigators she left the child in Cobb’s care on Sept. 26, the day before she found the boy unresponsive. During a police interview, Cobb allegedly “stated the child fell off a bike and scraped his face,” the affidavit reads. “Cobb stated the child got up and did not cry.”

At around 1 a.m. on Sept. 27, the mother, who claimed her son had no visible injuries, contacted Cobb because the boy wouldn’t stop crying or sleep. Cobb then took the child and the pair agreed he would return him early the following morning for daycare.

Shortly before 9 a.m., Cobb texted the mother and claimed the child was “sick and throwing up.” The mother later told detectives that during a Facetime call with the suspect, the baby appeared unresponsive and she noted he allegedly had a mark on his face, which Cobb claimed was from the purported bike incident, the affidavit states.

Cobb brought the child to the mother just before 11 a.m.

"Cobb stated at the hospital that the child woke up and ate breakfast prior to going back to [the mother], which I was advised by medical staff would have been impossible,” a detective wrote in the affidavit.

"Cobb offered no further explanation of how the child was injured,” the affidavit states.

Cobb was being held without bondat the Vanderburgh County jail and prosecutors expected to charged him in connection with the case during his initial court appearance on Oct. 4.