Police say a 10-year-old boy pointed this airsoft gun at a woman in Burbank as part of a prank. (KTLA-TV) |
BURBANK, Calif. (KTLA) -- Police arrested a 10-year-old boy for allegedly pointing a toy gun at a 67-year-old woman.
The unidentified boy went to the woman's home on Sunday to play a prank on her grandson, who reportedly beat up his friend at school, police said.
The boy knocked on the door and when the woman answered, he allegedly yelled "you suck" while pointing the gun at her.
He then ran away, and the woman called police, believing the gun was real.
Several neighbors also called police after seeing the boy running down the street with what appeared to be a gun.
Burbank police say the boy had a replica of a Colt 45, which he got from friends he plays with in his neighborhood.
The boy was arrested and fingerprinted, and then released to his parents.
The woman's family says they're in disbelief over the incident.
"She was pretty shaken up last night," granddaughter Veronica Anaya, said. "She was crying."
"We're talking about a lady who's going through chemotherapy right now. She has enough on her plate, let alone having a little kid come up to her with a gun that she didn't know if it was real or not."
Toy guns are supposed to have colored tips to distinguish them, but they can easily be manipulated to look real.
Authorities say an officer could have easily mistaken the replica for a real weapon and shot the boy.
"We come across that and we can't hesitate," Burbank Police Lt. John Dilibrand told KTLA.
"In shadows, in darkness, it looks like a gun to you. You're not going to take any chances."
"It's not just [a lesson] to the kids, but to the parents," Anaya said. "Know what you're buying your kids, and what you can get your kids into."
The unidentified boy went to the woman's home on Sunday to play a prank on her grandson, who reportedly beat up his friend at school, police said.
The boy knocked on the door and when the woman answered, he allegedly yelled "you suck" while pointing the gun at her.
He then ran away, and the woman called police, believing the gun was real.
Several neighbors also called police after seeing the boy running down the street with what appeared to be a gun.
Burbank police say the boy had a replica of a Colt 45, which he got from friends he plays with in his neighborhood.
The boy was arrested and fingerprinted, and then released to his parents.
The woman's family says they're in disbelief over the incident.
"She was pretty shaken up last night," granddaughter Veronica Anaya, said. "She was crying."
"We're talking about a lady who's going through chemotherapy right now. She has enough on her plate, let alone having a little kid come up to her with a gun that she didn't know if it was real or not."
Toy guns are supposed to have colored tips to distinguish them, but they can easily be manipulated to look real.
Authorities say an officer could have easily mistaken the replica for a real weapon and shot the boy.
"We come across that and we can't hesitate," Burbank Police Lt. John Dilibrand told KTLA.
"In shadows, in darkness, it looks like a gun to you. You're not going to take any chances."
"It's not just [a lesson] to the kids, but to the parents," Anaya said. "Know what you're buying your kids, and what you can get your kids into."
