A four-year-old girl accidentally shot dead her cousin, a boy of the same age while playing with a gun, Thursday, according to Detroit police.
Rodney Johnson, Detroit Deputy Chief, said that three children, all cousins, were playing in the house, located on the west side of the city when the accident occurred.
The kids found a "long gun" under a bed and started playing with it. "At this time, although it's early in the investigation, this appears to be a tragic accident," Detroit Police Public Information Officer Adam Madera said, reported CNN.
At the time of the incident, the children's grandfather was present in the house, reports the Detroit Free Press.
Johnson also said that that "it was too early" to file charges in this case. He added that the incident was avoidable.
He stressed that adults should keep the guns unloaded and locked while not at home.
This is the latest incident involving children accidentally shooting someone or dying of self-inflicted gunshot wounds. "This is an example of how we must maintain gun safety," he added.
Incidences of children accidentally killing people with guns are not new. A couple of weeks earlier, a 2-year-old girl shot herself in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Her father is facing involuntary manslaughter, reports CNN.
Last year June, a 5-year-old New Orleans girl accidentally shot herself in the head with a .38-caliber revolver. It was reported that her mother was out at a store.
A total of 703 children aged below 15 died due to accidental shootings between 2001 and 2010, according to the Centers for Disease Control's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.
