ATLANTA (AP) — A 14-year-old Georgia girl was killed when her younger brother was trying to sell a homemade gun, and he fired a shot at people who took the weapon without paying, a sheriff said.
The shot struck Kyra Scott, and she died as her mother was trying to take her to a hospital, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
Douglas County Sheriff Tim Pounds said Kyra’s 13-year-old brother and the man who was allegedly trying to buy a homemade gun, 19-year-old Yusef McArthur El, were both arrested Monday and charged with murder. McArthur El is also charged with robbery-sudden snatch. The two were denied bond Tuesday. A sheriff’s captain said Thursday they did not yet have attorneys.
McArthur El was being held at the Douglas County jail, and the 13-year-old boy was at a youth detention center.
Pounds said the boy had ordered all the parts he needed to make guns, including semiautomatic weapons, and the boy had been selling them. On Saturday, two people arrived at a home in Douglasville to buy one of his guns and fled without paying, Pounds said.
“According to the investigation, he was shooting at the folks that took his weapon,” Pounds said. “But instead, he shot his sister. And it’s so sad his sister’s death happened.”
Someone in the home called 911 after Kyra was shot, and her mother decided to drive her to a hospital. Police said Kyra died before she could get help.
Pounds said “ghost guns” are particularly troubling to law enforcement because they don’t have serial numbers and can’t be tracked.
Lt. Jon Mauney said the investigation continues, and additional charges are possible. Detectives hope to learn how many weapons the 13-year-old made and whether others in the home knew about the guns, Mauney said.
Kyra was a student at Chapel Hill High School, where grief counselors were brought in to help students and staff members. She had previously attended Lithia Springs High School, Mauney said.
“Kyra Scott, by all accounts, was a beautiful and kind soul, and nothing that is done in this case will bring her back,” District Attorney Dalia Racine said. “The cost of losing our children is simply too high of a price to pay, and we must do better.”