DADE CITY, Fla. (WFLA) – When Amairani Luna heard the knock at her front door Monday afternoon, she wasn’t prepared for she would find on the other side. When she saw two little boys, siblings ages nine and ten, she recognized their faces instantly.
She had known them most of their lives and she was shocked at the sight before her.
One of the boys, the 10-year-old, was shot in the head.
“It was scary, hurtful for me because I’ve known them since they were little. It’s sad,” she told News Channel 8.
She quickly studied the exit wound on the face of the 10-year-old. The boys were begging her to call for help.
She did.
The 10-year-old was rushed as a trauma alert to St. Joseph’s Hospital in Tampa.
“I actually felt like I wanted to cry because it is so sad. I wanted to know how this happened,” said Luna.
Pasco detectives are asking the same thing.
Why were two little boys home by themselves, playing with a gun in their Dade City home, according to the sheriff?
Why wasn’t the gun locked up?
Where were the parents?
According to Luna, the boys did not get on the bus Monday morning and may have been left alone all day. Investigators from Child Protective Services are now joining the Pasco Sheriff’s Office on the case. CPS was called in because the boys were left unattended.
It is not known whether or not the mother and father, who neighbors say were at work at the time, will face criminal charges such as child neglect.
The Pasco Sheriff’s Office wanted 8 On Your Side to share this message directly with all moms and dads in the Tampa Bay area and beyond:
“Lock up your guns, and make sure your kids don’t have access to them,” said spokesperson Melanie Snow. “This happens way too often, and it’s a preventable thing.”
The child remains at St. Joseph’s Hospital recovering from his gunshot wound as the investigation continues.
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