Questions still surround shooting death of 10-year-old in Mishawaka
MISHAWAKA, Ind. -- On Monday, the Mishawaka Police Department identified the victim of Saturday's deadly shooting as 10-year-old Sophia Burks.
It happened in the 300 block of Taylor Street just before 4:30 p.m.
Police say the circumstances of the shooting are still under investigation, and that more answers will come with the results of ballistics and autopsy reports.
Neighbors on scene told ABC57 Sophia Burks lived at the home the shooting happened at.
Police say 17-year-old Jacob Olvera, who was arrested after the shooting, does not live at the home but is the boyfriend of the victim's older sister.
A relative who lives a few doors down from the home tells ABC57 the shooting was possibly accidental with a gun allegedly belonging to Jacob Olvera, though that is not confirmed by Mishawaka Police.
Olvera has been moved to the Juvenile Justice Center of Saint Joseph County, and police say the case will be handled through the juvenile courts but may be moved to adult court if appropriate.
Olvera was arrested on several charges, including:
- Possession of a Machine Gun
- Dangerous Possession of a Firearm
- Criminal Recklessness, a Level 6 Felony
In their updated press release Monday, Mishawaka Police addressed the machine gun charge, saying that under Indiana Criminal Code, a machine gun is defined as any weapon that shoots and can be readily restored to shoot automatically more than one shot without manual reloading. This also includes parts that can assemble this type of weapon.