1-Year-Old Girl Dies Days After Allegedly Being Beaten by Mother’s Boyfriend

A 1-year-old girl died in the hospital after a week on life support as a result of an alleged beating at the hands of her mother’s boyfriend.

The New York City Police Department was called to an apartment in the Melrose neighborhood of the Bronx, N.Y., on Aug. 28 at 9:30 p.m. by Le’Nesha Mitchell, the girl’s mother, The New York Times reported. Her daughter, 1-year-old Imani Mitchell, was swollen and heavily bruised, according to the outlet.

The next day, Aug. 29, the NYPD arrested Jerome Thomas, 19, and charged him with assault, reckless endangerment and endangering the welfare of a child, per court records viewed by PEOPLE. Both The Times and PIX11 report that Thomas is Mitchell’s boyfriend. The Bronx district attorney’s office is planning to pursue homicide charges, according to The Times.

Mitchell had left her daughter in Thomas’ care for 45 minutes, according to a criminal complaint cited by The Times and PIX11.

Imani was subsequently admitted to the Neurological Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at New York-Presbyterian Columbia University Medical Center. She was placed on a ventilator, and doctors surgically removed a piece of her skull to relieve the pressure, according to The Times. Hospital staff confirmed that her injuries were “consistent with a forceful direct impact to the right side of her head,” the criminal complaint read, per The Times.

Thomas, 19, pleaded not guilty to the charges and is currently being held in Rikers Island. He will appear in court on Friday, Sept. 13, per court records viewed by PEOPLE.

A GoFundMe page was launched on Sunday. Sept. 7 by India Hunter to help with funeral costs to honor Imani.

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“Imani suffered severe injuries at the hands of someone her mom trusted,” the fundraiser page read. “Despite the doctors’ best efforts, Imani is now brain dead, and her family is faced with the devastating decision no parent should ever have to make, letting their precious baby go.”

The Administration for Children’s Services told The Times it is working with the NYPD in investigating Imani’s death.

PEOPLE has reached out to the NYPD for comment.

If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.