Greenville Police have arrested and charged a Greenville resident with child abuse after an infant was admitted to L.V. Stabler Memorial Hospital with severe burns, according to Investigator Lt. Justin Lovvorn.

James Womack, 31, was charged with willful abuse of a child under the age of 18, a class C felony.

The child was airlifted to Children’s Hospital in Birmingham shortly after arriving to L.V. Stabler Memorial Hospital on Saturday.

Lovvorn said that Womack was the boyfriend of the child’s mother, and was watching the child during the time it was injured.

Womack alleges that he was ironing clothes and had left the room when the incident occurred, Lovvorn said.

“We had the option of treating it as an accident or an intentional act, but from what I saw — the injury type, the location of the injury and the story we got from the boyfriend — it wasn’t sufficient to rule it an accident.”

At this time, it is not known for certain what caused the infant’s burns, Lovvorn said, but he said that the injuries could likely be from an iron.

“Right now I am communicating with the hospital in Birmingham to get more precise measurements and diameters of the injuries,” Lovvorn said.

“As soon as I get more information from the hospital, I’ll have what I need to make a decision on what could have caused the burns.”