Indiana man arrested after video showed young child playing with gun

An Indiana man was arrested over the weekend after a boy, reportedly his son, was seen wielding and pointing a gun outside their apartment unit. 

Shane Osborne, 45, a resident of the Indianapolis suburb of Beech Grove, faces a charge of felony neglect of a child dependent. The arrest was captured on the reality TV show called “On Patrol: Live,” which follows law enforcement officers on duty. 

Authorities responded Saturday to a 911 call made by a neighbor in the apartment building where the child was holding the weapon in a hallway. 

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The boy, who was not named, appears to be waving the gun and pulling the trigger. No rounds were in the gun’s chamber, police said. He did not appear to be harmed. 

“It’s almost incomprehensible what you’re watching,” said Beech Grove Deputy Police Chief Robert Mercuri. “I saw it the next day and even though I knew the outcome, as I’m watching the video, I was still scared. You find yourself catching your breath. I don’t know how you can’t watch that video, parent or non-parent and not be shocked and disturbed.”

When questioned by police, Osborne allegedly said he did not have a gun. However, when officers looked at home surveillance video provided by a neighbor, the child was allegedly seen in a hallway alone playing with a weapon, the TV series said in a news release. 

“Watching that video, ohhhh, you can’t, you can’t unsee it,” neighbor Nicole Summers told WTHR-TV. “He just kept going, ‘pow, pow, pow, pow.'”

Authorities seized a semiautomatic Smith & Wesson 9mm pistol from Osborne and he was taken into custody, Fox 59 reported. 

A magazine was also taken, which had 15 rounds inside and the child was returned to his mother. 

Beech Grove Mayor Dennis Buckley said he was “mortified” by the incident. 

“I received notification from our Police Chief soon after this incident took place,” he said in a statement, WTHR-TV reported. “As with all of you, I’m mortified and what took place and I’m so thankful that no one was hurt, especially the young child.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.