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CLEVELAND (AP) — A vigilant Cleveland woman standing at her kitchen window Tuesday evening may have averted a tragedy when she confiscated a full gun magazine from a 7-year-old boy who was loading it as two friends stood by.
When the woman went outside and took the magazine from him, he handed over a bag containing a 9 mm handgun, police said. She ordered all three boys, including a 12-year-old and a 9-year-old, to sit on her steps while she called police.
Officers who arrived searched the boys and found a large sheathed knife hidden in a sock of the 12-year-old along with a stun gun and two rounds of 9 mm ammunition his pocket.
The 7-year-old told officers that the handgun belonged to his mother's boyfriend and that it had been sitting on a living room mantle, police said. His mother told officers she didn't know where her son got the gun but said the knife and stun gun belonged to her.
No weapons were found on the 9-year-old, who was released to his mother. The 7-year-old and the 12-year-old were taken to Cleveland police headquarters where they were booked.
The police report said juvenile charges were filed against the boys before they were released to parents.
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