An 18-year-old man was charged with providing a handgun to a minor after Memphis Police say a 12-year-old shot a 13-year-old over a video game dispute.
Memphis, Tennessee, police say officers came to the Shadowbrook Townhouses in the 4000 block of Eagle River Road in the city's Parkway Village Sunday, where they found a 13-year-old suffering from a gunshot wound. After the teen was stabilized and determined to be in critical condition at LeBonheur hospital, he told police that he was shot by the 12-year-old boy during an argument over a video game. But Keshun Tuggle, 18, had previously told police there was a drive-by shooting and allegedly staged a crime scene because he had left his firearm out in the apartment prior to the incident.
The victim told police that he was shot over the video game dispute and that the gun belonged to the 12-year-old—and that Tuggle had given the boy the gun.
Memphis police affidavits obtained by the local WREG-TV news station show Tuggle admitted to disposing of the gun and staging a crime scene to make it appear an anonymous drive-by shooting had occurred. The 18-year-old was arrested Sunday and charged with providing a handgun to a juvenile, contributing to the delinquency of a minor and tampering or fabricating evidence from a crime scene.
Local authorities confirmed the details of Sunday's video game shooting incident to Newsweek Tuesday afternoon.
The victim, who is expected to recover, said the gun was allegedly laying out in the open prior to the 12-year-old shooting him over the video game argument. The victim noted that the preteen boy had become enraged before shooting him, although he did not say what video game was being played at the time of the incident.
The 13-year-old reiterated to police that the gun belonged to the 12-year-old but had been given to him by the 18-year-old Tuggle who remains in police custody Tuesday. Tuggle allegedly admitted to police that he had disposed of the firearm after the shooting occurred on Sunday. All three boys were at the scene of the shooting when Memphis police arrived.
No other adults have been charged by police in relation to the Sunday video game shooting. And police confirmed they do not believe any type of drive-by shooting occurred.
Shooting incidents tied to video games are far from a new issue among young gamers, with a 2018 mass shooting even occurring after a 24-year-old lost a Madden NFL tournament in Jacksonville, Florida.
