Teen posts, ‘I’m just glad I can say I made it to see 17’ — an hour later, he’s fatally shot in the head

A Minnesota teen who took to social media Saturday to celebrate that he “made it” to his 17th birthday was reportedly shot and killed a mere hour after making the post.

Chandra D. Payne, 38, told the St. Louis Dispatch that her son, Armond Latimore, asked her to get ice cream to go with his birthday cake. She said she arrived at a nearby store and, three minutes later, received a call indicating her son had been shot.

Payne said Latimore was shot outside a Chinese restaurant called Big Lau, where he went to get food. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.

The newspaper reported that the slain teen had mused online about his 17th birthday about an hour before he would be shot in the head.

“Thru all the bulls**t I den been thru I’m just glad I can say I made it to see 17,” he reportedly wrote on Facebook.

Thru all the bullshit I den been thru I'm just glad I can say I made it to see 17 #MYDAY #FREEGANG ⛽🎉

Posted by Armond Latimore on Saturday, August 18, 2018

Payne claimed that, after her son’s slaying, she discovered a paper he written for school in his dresser. The paper reportedly mentions a bully who was relentlessly tormenting him. She said that she, his father, nor his siblings knew about any bullying going on at school.

Payne said several people have come forward to tell her about photos where Latimore is seen posing with large sums of money and a gun. However, she told the Post-Dispatch that her son never owned a gun and described him as a “helping-hand child” who often took on neighborhood tasks to make money “the right way.”

This is an ongoing investigation. Anyone with information regarding Armond Latimore’s slaying is urged to call CrimeStoppers at 866-371-8477.

[Featured image: Armond Latimore/Facebook]