7-year-old finds gun in car - shortly afterwards his brother dies (†2)

Crestline (California/USA) - What a tragic incident: a two-year-old is shot dead in his family's car. His seven-year-old brother, of all people, is responsible for the fatal shot.

But what exactly happened?

As People reported, police were called to a parking lot in Crestline, California, at around 3:50 p.m. on Monday. The reason. Shots had been fired there.

The officers set off immediately. When they arrived at the scene, they were met with a shocking scene.

The toddler was taken to hospital in an ambulance as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, the doctors there could do nothing more for the boy: he died as a result of his serious injuries.

While the two-year-old had been admitted to hospital, the police had already begun their investigation. What they found out shortly afterwards made their blood run cold.

"Our officers learned that the victim and his seven-year-old brother were in the truck when the seven-year-old discovered a gun in the glove compartment," reads a press release from the sheriff's department. Shortly afterward, the fatal shot was fired.

It is still unclear who owned the gun and why it was not adequately secured. The investigation is ongoing. It remains to be seen to what extent the parents of the brothers will have to answer for the incident.

It is a shocking incident - but unfortunately not an isolated case.

As reported by the Los Angeles Times, the largest proportion of unintentional firearm deaths in the USA between 2003 and 2021 were caused by minors.

For this reason, the police in the States regularly appeal to people to store privately owned weapons with sufficient security - and always out of the reach of children.