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Police: Prince George’s Co. man arrested after 4-year-old finds ghost gun, sustains ‘self-inflicted gunshot wound’

A Cheverly, Maryland, man has been charged with multiple firearm offenses after his four-year-old family member was hospitalized Sunday night, following what Prince George’s County called a “self-inflicted gunshot wound.”

The ghost gun that police believe a four-year-old accidentally set off while playing hide-and-seek, sustaining a self-inflicted wound. (Courtesy Prince George’s County police)

A police spokesman told ²ÝÝ®´«Ã½ that officers responded to a report of a “child sustaining a self-inflicted gunshot wound” at an apartment in the 6400 block of Landover Road near 63rd Place around 10:45 p.m.

Police said the incident appears to have been an accident.

According to a preliminary investigation, the child found a loaded “ghost gun” — a firearm without a serial number — under a bed during a game of hide-and-seek. In a Monday, police said it appears a round was accidentally discharged, striking the child in the arm.

The child’s injuries are not life-threatening, officials said.

Police arrested and charged 20-year-old Jayvon Thomas of Cheverly with possessing the gun and leaving it unsecured. He is currently in custody. Thomas is a relative of the child, according to police.

The child was transported to a hospital.

Investigators are pursuing additional information about the circumstances, police said.

A map of the area where the shooting happened is below.

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Kate Corliss

Kate Corliss is a Digital Writer/Editor for ²ÝÝ®´«Ã½.com. She is a senior studying journalism at American University and serves as the Campus Life Editor for the student newspaper, The Eagle.

Matt Small

Matt joined ²ÝÝ®´«Ã½ ²ÝÝ®´«Ã½ at the start of 2020, after contributing to Washington’s top news outlet as an Associated Press journalist for nearly 18 years.

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