5-year-old Utah boy accidentally kills himself with a handgun he found in his parents’ bedroom

2025-04-19 22:01:43 source: category:My

SANTAQUIN, Utah (AP) — A small town south of Salt Lake City is mourning the death of a 5-year-old boy who accidentally shot himself with a handgun he found in his parents’ bedroom.

The boy found a 9 mm handgun in the back room of his house Thursday afternoon and fired a single shot to the head, said Lt. Mike Wall with the Santaquin Police Department. The boy’s parents, and possibly one of his siblings, were inside the home when the shooting happened but were not with him in the room.

Wall said authorities do not suspect foul play, and charges against the parents are not currently being pursued. He declined to say if or how the weapon was secured. The investigation, which will include a report by the medical examiner, could take several months. Police have not released the names of anyone involved.

The father went into the room as soon as he heard the gunshot and started CPR, but the boy died at the scene, Wall said.

“The family obviously is devastated. ... Obviously it’s a shock to the community. It’s always a good reminder of how quick things can happen and how fast accidents can take place,” Wall said.

The tight-knit town of about 14,000 people is one of the best anyone could ask for when it comes to support, Wall said. Santaquin is about 60 miles (96 kilometers) south of Salt Lake City.

More:My

Recommend

Man charged with murder in death of beloved Detroit-area neurosurgeon

DETROIT (AP) — Authorities filed charges Wednesday in the 2023 homicide of a beloved Detroit doctor

Saipan, placid island setting for Assange’s last battle, is briefly mobbed — and bemused by the fuss

SAIPAN, Northern Mariana Islands (AP) — It was a peculiar setting to the final act in a legal drama

Detroit is banning gas stations from locking customers inside, a year after a fatal shooting

DETROIT (AP) — The city of Detroit is taking steps to ban gas stations from locking people inside th