A man in the US state of Indiana has been arrested for parental neglect after his toddler son was spotted waving a handgun on a live police reality TV show, New York Post reported. Footage from a neighbour's security camera showed the 4-year-old boy walking with the gun in his hand at his apartment in the city of Beech Grove.
The video was aired by Reelz series 'On Patrol: Live,' during the TV show's live broadcast on Saturday, January 14. The show follows on-duty police officers across the country.
Beech Grove police officers responded soon after a neighbour called 911, "stating she and her son had witnessed the child alone in the hallway outside their unit, and that he had been holding a gun and pointing it at them."
In the 'On Patrol: Live' segment, police then can be seen questioning the boy's father once they arrived on the scene. However, the father of the child denied having a gun in his possession. As they were exiting his apartment, the man's neighbours insisted to police that they were certain about the gun. Another neighbour stopped the cops, telling them she had captured surveillance footage of the incident.
The police officers then proceeded to search the unit and found a 9mm Smith and Wesson pistol at the back of a desk drawer. No rounds were in the gun's chamber, police said. A magazine was also taken, which had 15 rounds inside and the child was returned to his mother.
I'm just glad they found the gun 🙌👏🏼👏🏼 Great job locating it! #BeechGrove @ReelzChannel @OnPatrolNation pic.twitter.com/oBOwqp0i0x
— Addy Perez (@addy_pez) January 15, 2023
The toddler's father, Shane Osborne, 45, was arrested and is expected to appear in court for his initial hearing Tuesday afternoon, according to WTHR. He now faces a felony charge for neglect of a dependent. In the footage, police were seen taking the man, handcuffed, out of the apartment complex.
Beech Grove Mayor Dennis Buckley released a statement to WTHR saying he was "mortified" about the incident.
"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. I appreciate the quick action taken by the Beech Grove Police Department to secure the small child and the gun in question. I ask that the Marion County Prosecutor's Office work tirelessly to secure charges and a conviction against the responsible parties, with maximum penalties. Society shouldn't accept anything less," he said.
