Tempe boy left alone shoots self in neck, dies

A 9-year-old Tempe boy died Friday night after he found a handgun and accidentally shot himself in the neck while he and his younger sister were home alone.

The boy’s name was not released.

He and his 8-year-old sister were inside a condominium at 850 S. River Drive a little before 6 p.m. when the gun went off, Tempe police spokesman Brandon Banks said.

The boy’s stepfather had left to pick up a third child , and the mother was on her way home, Banks said.

“There are conflicting accounts of how long the stepfather was away,” Banks said. Detectives were looking into the possibility that he was gone longer than they originally thought.

At some point, the boy’s mother learned of the accident and called 911, Banks said. He could not say whether the mother found her son when she came home or the daughter called her for help.

Police were also unsure how the child got his hands on the gun.

No one was arrested Friday night, Banks said.

“Any charges that are brought, if they are brought, would be determined much later,” he said.