Man Charged With Shooting Girl, 6, After Ball Rolled in His Yard

A witness says another dad had confronted suspect before the shooting
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 21, 2023 12:31 AM CDT
Details of Shooting Involving 6-Year-Old, Basketball Revealed
This Dec. 2022 image provided by the City of Gastonia Police Department shows Robert Louis Singletary.   (City of Gastonia Police Department via AP)

The man accused of shooting a 6-year-old girl and her parents after a ball rolled into his yard has been arrested. Robert Louis Singletary allegedly fled North Carolina after the Tuesday shooting, which left all three injured, and was found Thursday in Florida. Authorities say the 24-year-old turned himself in, NBC News reports. Meanwhile, more details of the moments leading up to the shooting are starting to come out, CNN reports. Several people from the neighborhood say kids were playing basketball when the ball rolled into Singletary's yard and he shouted at the children who went to get it. One reported the incident to his dad, who, witnesses say, approached the yard and told the suspect something along the lines of, "stop cussing my kid out, if you got a problem come to me and we can work it out."

Witnesses say it was then Singletary went into his house, came back out with a gun, and started shooting. The family who was injured, however, say they had nothing to do with the basketball game and were simply outside grilling while their daughter rode her bike; the father who confronted Singletary was not hit, nor was his son. Neighbors say Singletary had just moved in a few weeks ago and had acted like he "hated" the kids in the neighborhood, often yelling at them and accusing them of running through his yard or leaving toys in his yard. He faces charges of attempted first-degree murder, assault with a deadly weapon, and possession of a firearm. (More North Carolina stories.)

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