Authorities in Georgia are investigating the fatal shooting of a young boy found dead from a gunshot wound inside his family's DeKalb County home early Wednesday morning.
Police discovered the child's body just after midnight while responding to a report of a person found deceased at a home on the 4100 block of Loveless Drive in Ellenwood, just outside of Atlanta, a spokesperson for the DeKalb County Police Department (DKPD) told NTD via email on Wednesday.
Officers found the juvenile dead from a gunshot wound upon arrival, the spokesman said. The circumstances leading up to the shooting are still under investigation, and investigators are actively working to determine what transpired.
Chris Breaker, a neighbor who lives nearby, told the Atlanta station that he heard a gunshot ring out during the night.
"I heard the gunshot—I was just sitting in my truck, and I didn't know where it came from, but it sounded muffled, like it was inside of a house," Breaker said. "Roughly about 20 minutes later cops came flying down the street."
According to multiple media reports, investigators remained on the scene for several hours. Numerous police cruisers lined the road outside the home, and nearby streets were briefly closed before reopening after the initial investigation concluded.
Speaking to Fox 5, Breaker also stressed the importance of safe firearm storage in homes. "You just got to be more responsible with the weapons and firearms we have inside our houses," he said. "And just all around we've got to be careful."
It's unclear whether any charges will be filed in connection with the fatal shooting.
"This could have been a more tragic incident for the family," DKPD told the outlet at the time. "We’d like to remind people DeKalb County Police Department offers free gun safes through each of its precincts in an effort to prevent this type of incident from happening in our community."