Toddler from Colorado Springs recovering from burns allegedly caused by stepfather

A 3-year-old boy from Colorado Springs is back home recovering after he was badly burned by scalding hot water three months ago.

His step-father is accused of putting him in a bathtub full of hot water as a punishment, and faces a number of charges for it.

Shaylene Nombrano never expected to see her son Eliaz Perez on the playground, just three months after she says he was placed in scalding hot water.

“I look at him now and he’s recovering very well,” she said.

Seeing Eliaz play, it’s hard to believe at one point he was bedridden with second and third-degree burns all over his upper body.

“It makes me happy to know he’s recovering, but not only is it physical what he went through, it’s emotional,” Nombrano says.

What hurts more is the person who police say is responsible for causing those burns is Eliaz’s step-dad, Albert Medina, who will be in court Monday where he’ll plead guilty or not guilty to child abuse charges.

Nombrano believes it was all because he got frustrated with Eliaz for not making it to the bathroom on time.

She says seeing the boy before her and seeing the pictures from months ago is almost as if it was someone completely different.

“His face cleared up really nicely,” Nombrano said.

After being covered in these bandages, and undergoing several skin grafts, Eliaz is now able to wear this compression shirt to help heal his burns and scars.

A big improvement from when he was at a local hospital, unable to open his eyes.

“I held him and it was just so hard. I never thought I’d have to see my child go through something like that,” she said.

He has to wear this shirt for the net year, but Nombrano says she knows they’re fortunate Eliaz’s accident and recovery aren’t worse.