Teenager shot dead after breaking up bullying incident

Police ‘sick and tired of children in our community coming into contact with firearms’

Sam Reynolds, 16, was shot dead outside his home in Arlington, Texas (WFAA.com)

A 16-year-old has been shot dead by a younger boy after he broke up a bullying incident, police in Texas say.

Sam Reynolds was killed close to his home in Arlington.

A boy thought to be between 13 and 15 has been arrested on suspicion of his murder. Police say the suspect is the aggressor in the alleged bullying incident that happened several days before the shooting. He is believed to live in the same apartment complex as the victim.

Arlington Police Lt Chris Cook told WFAA: “After he broke up the fight he started having some trouble with the suspect.”

He said the incident was caught on camera. ”Within a matter of probably just a couple of seconds he pulls out a handgun from the rear part of his pants he was wearing, points it at the victim and fires one round.”

He added: “It begs the question: wow did he get the gun?”

The weapon is believed to be a .40-calibre semi-automatic handgun, although it has not yet been found.

Lt Cook said: “We are sick and tired of children in our community coming into contact with firearms.”

Reynolds is reportedly the sixth homicide victim in Arlington, a city of about 365,000, so far this year.

His mother, Madison Fletcher, said: “He was so compassionate and cared so much about his friends and family. He was passionate about soccer and music. He was very loyal and had a great sense of humour.”

According to the Gun Violence Archive, which logs incidents from 7,500 law enforcement, government and media sources across the United States, there have been 1,545 homicides involving guns so far in 2020.