Arizona woman charged with abuse of 8-year-old boy with serious injuries

PHOENIX – An Arizona woman was charged with child abuse after an 8-year-old boy suffered multiple broken bones and damage to internal organs, authorities said Thursday.

The Pinal County Sheriff’s Office said in a press release that Claudia Genis, 29, surrendered on Tuesday after the boy told investigators she caused his injuries.

Genis, who was being held on a $750,000 secured bond, was described as the partner of the boy’s mother.

The boy’s mother told the hospital staff he’d fallen from a skateboard, but doctors were skeptical about the explanation and called the sheriff’s office, the release said.

The boy had to be flown to Phoenix Children’s Hospital for emergency surgery, and he stayed there for several weeks.

Investigators believe he’d been injured 24-48 hours before being admitted to the hospital.

Genis stopped cooperating with the investigation, but detectives found evidence in her phone that she’d been trying to fabricate a story, the release said.

The boy was placed in custody of the Arizona Department of Child Safety.

“This case is truly heartbreaking, the fact someone could do this to an innocent child,” Sheriff Mark Lamb said in the release.

“But I am thankful our detectives were able to get to the bottom of it and free this child from his abuser.”

The mother is cooperating with the investigation, which is ongoing, the release said.

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