Boy, 11, Dies of Gunshot Wound
An 11-year-old South El Monte boy died after he was accidently shot Friday afternoon while playing with a rifle at a friend’s home, coroners officials said.
The boy, Salvador Ortiz, died Saturday at Greater El Monte Community Hospital after receiving a single bullet wound to the head, said Claude Boucher, the coroner’s supervising investigator.
Ortiz and a 14-year-old friend, whose name was not released because of his age, came across a .22-caliber rifle that they did not realize was loaded, sheriff’s deputies said.
The 14-year-old boy began handling the gun and when he pulled the trigger, the gun fired once, striking Ortiz in the head, deputies said.
Neither the 14-year-old nor two other boys playing in the house were hurt, deputies said. Sheriff’s homicide detectives declared it an accidental shooting.
Deputies said they did not know whether either parent was home at the time.
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