‘I think I murdered him accidentally’: Boy, 13, charged as an adult for fatally shooting friend with crossbow

The deadly bolt travelled through the victim and wounded his little brother 

A 13-year-old Oklahoma boy who reportedly claimed he fatally shot his 10-year-old friend with a crossbow while hunting has been charged with first-degree murder.

The Oklahoman reported that Shane Edward Brooks, of Wellston, is accused of shooting brothers Austin Almanza, 10, and Ayden Almanza, 8, with a crossbow on October 21. Austin died from his injuries while Ayden was wounded in his left arm.

As CrimeOnline previously reported, authorities said the boys were injured by a single bolt that first traveled through Austin’s torso and struck Ayden in his left arm. The bolt was allegedly still in Ayden’s arm when police arrived. Austin was pronounced dead at the scene.

READ More: Teen fatally shoots 10-year-old friend with crossbow after ‘a disagreement’: Police

Though Brooks claimed that the shooting was an accident, Ayden told investigators that the teen “was mad at them,” according to The Oklahoman.

The brothers’ uncle, Roger Conaway, who was nearby at the time of the shooting, reportedly recalled hearing screaming before finding Ayden with a bolt in his arm. Conway said that Ayden then told him that Brooks had shot him and Austin.

Brooks, dressed in camouflage, emerged and said, “I think I murdered him accidentally” before he “ran home crying,” Conway recounted in an affidavit.

The local newspaper reported that Brooks’ stepfather told investigators that the teen had received the crossbow a day before the fatal incident. Conway also remembered seeing the teen shooting arrows into the air the day he got the crossbow.

“Shane was careless with the crossbow,” the uncle reportedly told investigators.

According to the Associated Press, a judge ordered a psychological evaluation of the 13-year-old to determine how the criminal case should be handled moving forward.

[Featured Image: Ayden and Austin Almanza/Facebook]