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Police: 4-year-old in Ohio shot himself in the head

Posted at 4:39 PM, Sep 28, 2017
and last updated 2017-09-29 06:47:54-04

A 4-year-old child who was shot in the head in Parma, Ohio on Thursday afternoon has died.

"It sounded like a shot, and now some guy is running around the backyard screaming and yelling," a 911 caller said. "I don't know what happened, but it doesn't look good or sound good. There's a little kid, looks like he's got blood all over him."

Officers responded after receiving several 911 calls around 3:10 p.m. local time regarding a child shot. 

When officers arrived, they found the 4-year-old with a single gunshot wound to the head. 

The child was taken to MetroHealth Medical Center where he was later pronounced dead. 

Police say the shooting happened inside a van, in the driveway of the home on Brownfield Drive.

Investigators said the boy's father has a concealed carry permit, and that his loaded gun was in the center console glove box of the family van. 

The child apparently gained possession of the gun that was in the car and accidentally shot himself with it, police said. 

Parma Police Captain Kevin Riley told Cleveland-based WEWS he believes the shooting was accidental, but his department will continue to investigate.

Riley said it's not clear if the boy's father could face charges in this case.

"We did take the vehicle here, we did take the firearm, we are going to continue our investigation," said Riley.

"Our detectives and our crime scene personnel will continue to investigate, and we'll continue to try to piece everything together. Just so we have an accurate picture of what occurred."