A two-year-old toddler lost her life when she was caught in a heated dispute involving her dad and her uncle. The two men were fighting over a T-shirt but one of them pulled a gun and started shooting at his family members.
According to People, the toddler, Octavia Huber Young, was in the arms of her dad, Ethan Huber Young, when gunfire ensued. Ethan's brother, Andrew Huber Young, was identified as the man who pulled the trigger that killed the child.
The state police in Maine were still able to radio and rush the toddler to the hospital but she didn't survive the gunshot wounds. The other family members who were hurt when the gun went off were treated at the hospital for non-life-threatening injuries.
Octavia Huber Young's Uncle Held Without Bail
The 19-year-old who fired the gun surrendered himself to the police, according to WGME. Andrew is currently held without bail at the York County Jail.
He confirmed that he and Ethan were arguing over a shirt that the latter wore without asking permission from Andrew. When their dispute escalated, their father asked Andrew to leave the house and he heeded.
However, he and his brother apparently continued arguing via text messages even as Andrew went to a baseball game. Apparently, Ethan made threats about destroying Andrew's stuff.
He then returned to the house with a .22 caliber handgun, which belonged to their father. Based on previous target shooting, Andrew claimed that the gun had a bad aim.
He admitted to the police that he was aiming for the brother with whom he was having a dispute but the shot wounded the three victims. He told the police he didn't mean to hit his family.
The Huber Young patriarch was shot in the face while Octavia's father was hit on his left shoulder. Octavia, on the other hand, had a gunshot wound on her left arm but the bullet shot through her chest.
Andrew Huber Young Has No Criminal Record
Octavia's uncle does not have a record with the police. His boss at the gas station said that he is an honest worker who had few sick days and was always punctual. Co-workers described Andrew as nice, polite, and well-liked by the customers. It's unclear, however, what triggered Andrew to fire a gun at one of his brothers besides their argument.
Samantha Higgins, the toddler's mom, said that her daughter had a playful spirit. Her friends have set up a GoFundMe to help with the financial cost of Octavia's burial. As of press time, the fundraiser has received over 130 donations amounting to nearly $7,000.00.
Higgins' brother, Craig, said that Octavia was just learning to talk and could say "please" or "mama" and "dada" but she was still learning to say "uncle." Her parents are no longer together but she was with her dad that day as her mom was working at the nursing home.
