An 11-year-old boy in Pennsylvania is facing criminal charges after he fatally shot his father for confiscating his Nintendo Switch, according to court documents.
The gunfire occurred in the early hours of Tuesday morning at a home in the Duncannon Borough, according to court documents recently obtained by WGAL. When officers responded to the residence around 3:20 a.m., they discovered 42-year-old Douglas Dietz dead in the bedroom he shared with his wife. According to the affidavit it is connected to his son’s room by a closet.
The night prior, the family celebrated the boy’s birthday, singing him “Happy Birthday” before turning in for the night.
Douglas’ wife Jillian Dietz told police that she awoke to the loud noise and a fiery smell. She then tried to wake her husband, only to realize that he was heavily bleeding. The boy then allegedly shouted, “Daddy’s dead,” according to WGAL. Authorities at the scene also said they heard the boy tell his mother, “I killed Daddy,”
The boy also allegedly told investigators he got mad at his father when he said he had to go to bed for the night. He said he found a key to his father’s safe while searching for his Nintendo Switch, which had previously been confiscated. Authorities said he additionally confessed to “removing the gun from the safe, loading bullets into it and walking over to his father’s side of the bed,” according to court documents.” He pulled back the hammer and fired the gun at his father.”
When police asked him what he believed would happen, he said that “he was mad, and he had not thought about that.”
The boy has been charged with criminal homicide, and he is being held at the Perry County Prison.
