In a heartbreaking and utterly avoidable tragedy, a three-year-old girl accidentally shot and killed her baby sister after stumbling upon a loaded handgun left in their home. Their father, 25-year-old Michael Tejeda, has now been charged with first-degree murder and multiple counts of child endangerment following the devastating incident in Wichita, Kansas.
It all happened in February while Tejeda was home caring for his two young daughters. He reportedly dozed off while watching TV around 6 pm and later told police he woke up two hours later, realising the handgun he’d fallen asleep with was still in its holster. He said he took the weapon off and placed it on the fireplace before heading to his bedroom to change. That’s when everything fell apart.
While in the other room, Tejeda told authorities he heard a loud bang. Moments later, his three-year-old daughter came running in, crying. Rushing to the living room, he found his one-year-old daughter on the sofa with a gunshot wound to her head.
In the frantic call to 911, Tejeda could reportedly be heard asking his toddler daughter, “why she did that,” a moment that emergency services won’t soon forget. Wichita Police responded swiftly, with a firefighter seen carrying the injured child out of the home. She was rushed to Wesley Medical Centre but was tragically pronounced dead.
Tejeda was looking after the girls while their mother was out. She arrived back to the horror unfolding at their home and was taken in by police for questioning. According to reports, she told officers that Tejeda had called her via FaceTime to break the devastating news.
Now facing charges of first-degree murder, two counts of aggravated child endangerment, and criminal possession of a firearm, Tejeda is accused of reckless and fatal negligence. Authorities say the weapon was left unsecured and within reach of the children, a violation that’s become the core of the criminal charges.
It’s a case that’s sent shockwaves through the local community and raised serious questions about firearm safety in homes with children. A moment of carelessness turned into a lifelong tragedy — one that will haunt everyone involved.
The investigation is ongoing, and more details are expected to come to light. But the heartbreaking reality is that one little girl has lost her life, and another will grow up with the unimaginable burden of what happened — all because a loaded gun was left where tiny hands could find it.
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