A young boy allegedly shot dead his mother because she refused to buy him a virtual reality headset.
The 10-year-old suspect, from Milwaukee in the US state of Wisconsin, initially told police that the shooting was an accident.
However he later changed his story and said he intentionally aimed the gun at his mother, 44-year-old Quiana Mann, before pulling the trigger just before 7am on November 21.
The youngster has been charged an adult with first-degree reckless homicide.
Under Wisconsin law, children as young as 10 must be charged as adults for various serious crimes, but the boy's lawyers are attempting to have the case transferred to juvenile court.
The boy, who was described by family members as having mental health issues, is currently being held in juvenile detention.
Image:
Fox)One of his lawyers, Angela Cunningham called the case "an absolute family tragedy".
“I don’t think anybody would deny or disagree with that ... The adult system is absolutely ill-equipped to address the needs of a 10-year-old child," she added, as reported by 7 News.
According to the complaint, the boy initially told police that he retrieved the firearm from his mother's bedroom and walked down to the basement where she was doing the washing.
He told officers that he twisted the gun on his finger when it fired and struck her.
A day later, concerned relatives followed up with police, with the boy's aunt saying that when she picked him up, he retrieved a set of house keys that contained a key to the gun's lockbox.
Image:
Future Publishing via Getty Images)When the aunt asked the boy about the shooting, he said that he pointed the gun at his mother and she told him to put it down.
The suspect's aunt and sister added that he had not cried or shown remorse about the shooting and that he had ordered an Oculus Virtual Reality headset off his mother's Amazon account the morning after she died.
He reportedly said he did it because she refused to buy him the headset on Amazon.
Relatives also recounted disturbing behaviour from the boy's past, including a time when he filled a balloon with a flammable liquid and set it on fire, causing an explosion.
They also said he had previously swung the family's puppy around by its tail when he was aged 4.
When Milwaukee police re-interviewed the boy in light of the new information, he told them that he aimed the gun at his mother with two hands while in a shooting stance.
According to the complaint, he added that he tried shooting a wall to "scare her" when she walked in front of him and he shot her.
He could face up to 60 years behind bars if he is convicted as an adult.
Quiana's funeral is set for Friday and according to a GoFundMe page set up to help with costs, she will be remembered as "compassionate, loving, and kind".
"Whether you need a friend with a listening ear, advice on how to cook, or simply a few laughs, she would be just one call away," the page reads.
"She gave so much to this world and will be sorely missed."