American girl aged THREE kills herself after mistaking handgun for Wii control. AU.S. toddler accidently killed herself after mistaking her stepfather's handgun for a Nintendo Wii control.
Cheyenne Alexis McKeehan, three, shot herself in the stomach with the .380 caliber, semi-automatic weapon after finding it lying on a table in the living room.
Fatal: Cheyenne Alexis McKeehan died after shooting herself in the stomach with her stepfather's gun
Her mother was sitting at the computer just a few feet away while her three-month-old brother was also lying nearby.
Investigators today said that the child had probably mistaken the weapon for a Wii control.
Her mother, Tina Ann Cronberger, 32, told them Cheyenne had played on the games consol for days at a time.
Wilson County Sheriff Terry Ashe displayed two guns taken from the home - one the Wii controller and the other the handgun which killed Cheyenne.
'You can see by the comparison of the toy weapon and the real weapon that there's little chance a three-year-old would differentiate between the two,' Ashe said.
'If you have a live handgun with a toy that looks the same - for parents some bells and whistles need to go off.
'Right now it's a terrible tragedy investigation.'
The horrific events unfolded in Lebanon, Wilson County, Tennessee, on Sunday evening after Cheynne's stepfather Douglas Cronberger, 32, heard a prowler outside the property.
He fetched his gun, which he usually kept unloaded in a cabinet and went to investigate. After failing to find anyone, he left the gun in the living room and went to bed.
A short time later, Cheyenne short herself. She was taken to hospital but pronounced dead on arrival.
There has been no decision if any charges will be filed against the child's parents at this stage.
Deadly: Police displayed the gun which fired the fatal shot (top) and the Wii gun recovered from the house (bottom)
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