A 2-year-old girl in Alabama died suddenly while in the care of her mother’s boyfriend, and now the boyfriend is being charged with her murder.

AL.com reports that Levi Ellise Pointer, 2, of Hoover ,died on September 21. Police responded to a 911 call made by her mother’s boyfriend, Dlonta Khalil Melton, 19, who was watching the girl at the time.

Emergency responders reportedly found the girl in severe distress, but Melton could not explain what had happened to her.

The girl was transported to a local hospital where doctors attempted to revive her, but she succumbed to her injuries and was pronounced dead six hours after her arrival.

A medical examination determined that the little girl suffered a skull fracture, and the coroner ruled the cause of death as homicide by blunt force trauma.

Police arrested Melton on Tuesday, and he is being held on $50,000 bail pending formal charges expected on Thursday.

“From the very beginning we were determined to find the truth for Levi and her mother,” Hoover Police Chief Nick Derzis told Al.com. “We also wanted to make certain that we got this case right because we have a victim who can no longer speak for herself.”

“This has been a somewhat complicated case and we’ve been very thorough and methodical in our efforts,” Hoover police Capt. Gregg Rector told the news outlet.

“For five days, Melton told no one that he had knowledge of the injury that caused this poor baby’s death. Today we begin the process of holding him accountable for his actions.”

Feature photo: Facebook/WVTM 13