A 10-year-old boy has been accused of fatally shooting his mother in the face while she was doing housework - all because she wouldn't get him a virtual reality headset.
The boy, who has not been identified in media reports, was charged after shooting Quiana Mann, 44, from three feet away at their Milwaukee home, per criminal charges obtained by the Journal Sentinel.
The following day, he was said to have used his deceased mother's Amazon account to purchase himself the Oculus VR headset he wanted, which usually costs between $130 to $500.
He later reportedly told his grandmother he was "sorry" for ending his mother's life and asked for the whereabouts of the item he had bought online.
The youngster, who relatives described as having "rage issues" and as someone who hears voices that aren't there, has been charged with first-degree reckless homicide and will be tried as an adult.
He told authorities that he had shot his mother accidentally and that she had walked in front of him while he was aiming at a wall to "scare her". It was then that he said he accidentally fired at her.
In a later interview, he admitted that he had intended to aim at Mann before he shot her dead at their home on 87th Street near Hemlock at around 7:00AM on November 21.
Mann had four children, including the son who shot her: Brianna, TJ, Brandon, and Noah. It has not been confirmed which of her sons shot her. After the incident, he put the firearm in a closet and told his older sister that their mom was dead, per the complaint. It was then that Brianna called 911.
For serious crimes, children as young as 10 can be charged as adults. However, the boy's legal team could try to have the case moved to juvenile court.
As of now, he is being detained in a juvenile detention center. The complaint states that he had told police he found the gun in his mom's bedroom, before going to the basement, where she was doing laundry.
He described twirling the weapon around his finger before it went off. The boy was allowed to stay with family, and a release from officials said the incident was the result of a child "playing" with a gun.
The following day, concerned family members called authorities. The boy's aunt told police that when she collected him, he got a hold of some keys including a key to the gun's lockbox. When she asked him about the tragic ordeal, the boy said he pointed the gun at his mother and that she told him to put it down.
The aunt went on to tell police that her nephew never cried or showed remorse and had even physically attacked his seven-year-old cousin the same day.
After learning this new information, detectives interviewed the boy a second time. This time, he told police he had aimed the gun at his mother with two hands while in a shooting stance.
The boy is set to appear in court on December 8 and is being held on a $50,000 bond. He could face up to 60 years in prison if found guilty as an adult.
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