A Pennsylvania father has been charged after his 3-year-old son tried to kill himself with a loaded handgun left under the couch, authorities said.
Jose Hilario Abreu, 28, was charged Friday with manslaughter and child endangerment in the March 28 death of Elijah Abreu Borgen.
Abreu is accused of leaving a loaded semi-automatic handgun in the room under the couch where his son and 2-year-old child were sitting in their Allentown home.
Lehigh County prosecutors said Abreu left the room, heard a loud bang, and returned to find her son with a gunshot wound to the chest.
Lehigh County District Attorney Gavin Hourihan said the gun was “unholstered and resting on a pillow on the couch where the two young children were sitting” when it was fired.
Police arrived at the family’s home around noon after Ilya’s mother reported that her son had shot himself.
The boy was rushed to Lehigh Valley Hospital Cedar Crest, but the boy could not be saved and his death was ruled an accident.
Officials said Abreu’s handgun was found pointed at Elijah on a couch pillow, and bullet residue was found in the boy’s hand.
Abreu was sentenced to $250,000 in prison after his arraignment Friday.
Rep. Josh Siegel (D-Allentown) argued that Elijah’s death was “completely preventable.”
“Be a good parent, be a responsible gun owner, and store guns responsibly for your family,” Siegel said. said in a statement.
