MIDLOTHIAN, Va. — A seven-year-old boy has died after he was shot in the head outside The Boathouse Restaurant in Midlothian Thursday evening. The boy was shot walking with his father in the parking lot of the restaurant, police said. The father and son were there to watch some nearby fireworks. according to WTVR.
The boy was with his father in a parking lot outside The Boathouse Restaurant in Midlothian, Va. around 9 p.m. when he was struck in the head by the bullet.
“A large crowd had been gathering over by the reservoir to watch fireworks and a young boy, seven years old, was walking through the parking lot with his dad. He was a few step behind his dad and he [the boy] fell to the ground,” Chesterfield Police Capt. Brad Badgerow told WTVR. “Initially they thought he was just passed out. They saw some blood. They thought he may have hit his head.”
When he arrived at the hospital, medical personnel found a bullet wound in the top of his head.
Early Friday, the boy was listed in critical condition. Around 12 p.m., officials confirmed to WTVR the boy died as a result of the gunshot wound.
Police said it’s unlikely the shot was intentionally fired at the boy. Officers believe the bullet came from a gun fired off the premises.
“We don’t think this was an intentional shooting. We think that somebody in or around the Brandermill area was celebrating the Fourth of July. Unfortunately we think they were shooting a gun in a reckless manner and this young boy is a victim,” Badgerow said.
