Shocking security video from a Georgia gas station captured the tragic scene when a father apparently left a loaded pistol in a car with his two boys and one died from a gunshot wound.
The harrowing incident unfolded on Monday at the Texaco gas station on Rock Chapel Road in Lithonia, near Atlanta.
Video shows 42-year-old Dante Daugherty parking his car at the pump and going inside of the station. Inside the car are his two sons, a 6-year-old and a 7-year-old.
A short time later, the 6-year-old boy throws open the car door and runs away.
When Daugherty returned to the car, he found his 7-year-old son, Zayre Daugherty, with a gunshot wound.
Police said that emergency personnel responded to the call at about 6:30 p.m., but the boy was pronounced dead at the scene. An arrest warrant obtained by WAGA-TV said that the boy had been shot in the head.
The father was arrested and booked into the DeKalb County jail.
The employees at the gas station said that no one had reported hearing any gunfire.
Akbar Dhanani, one of the employees, told WAGA that the store was releasing the video in order to help prevent other such tragedies in the future.
“He comes here all the time,” Dhanani said. “He is a regular customer, and I feel so bad. He is like family, you know. I feel so sad for them.”
Daugherty was charged with murder in the second degree and two counts of second-degree cruelty to children.
Police have not said whether they believe the younger brother shot Zayre or whether they believe he accidentally shot himself.
Here’s a local news video about the incident:
Grieving father arrested after son tragically murdered | FOX 5 Newswww.youtube.com
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