A troubled 14-year-old boy has been arrested after he allegedly shot his mother in the back of the head after she discovered he had taken a tablet from one of her clients.
Havok Lyon allegedly killed his 41-year-old mother, Theresa McIntosh, on March 7 at their home in Cheyenne, Wyoming — and has been charged with felony first-degree murder, where he will be tried as an adult, prosecutors said. Wyoming Tribune Eagle I mentioned.
McIntosh’s death was initially investigated as a suicide. But after cops and medical staff raised suspicions, Leon later allegedly admitted to cops that he shot his mother with her own gun after an argument over the stolen device, according to the outlet, citing court documents.
Leon also told police he had thought about killing his mother on a number of occasions in the past when she asked him to do things he didn’t want to do, the documents said.
The teen – who has stolen other devices in the past – overheard his parents arguing about the recent theft.
McIntosh referred to him as a “retard” and a “thief,” which upset him.
At approximately 11:30 a.m. on the morning of the shooting, McIntosh asked Lyons to finish his homework while she did the puzzle in his room.
The mother-son duo began fighting over the tablet, and McIntosh demanded the password written on a notebook that the teen retrieved and threw into the room, the 14-year-old told law enforcement.
The teen threw the notebook on the floor and went to get the gun hidden in his bedroom.
When his mother bent down to pick up the notebook, he allegedly shot her in the back of the head, according to court documents.
Leon’s father was playing video games in the basement and said he heard a “pop” sound about fifteen minutes later, but believed it was the sound of a balloon popping due to him wearing noise-canceling headphones.
About an hour later, Leon’s father went to the main floor of the house, where he saw the teen outside his bedroom who said he didn’t know what happened and that it “just exploded,” referring to the gun. American Sun It was reported, citing an affidavit from the Laramie County Sheriff.
According to court documents, Leon’s father administered first aid to McIntosh, but she did not respond and called 911.
A black 9mm Taurus pistol was found near McIntosh’s body, which confused Leon’s father because it was usually kept in McIntosh’s car as a loaded magazine was kept in the gun, but it never had a round chamber, according to court documents.
The teen initially claimed his mother handed him the firearm, but later said he stole it from her car after getting into a “big fight” over his math grade. Oil City News stated in court documents.
Leon’s father told cops that his son knew how to handle and handle firearms, adding that he “knew not to point a firearm at someone unless they were planning to shoot and kill them,” according to the Tribune.
McIntosh was taken to a regional medical center before being airlifted to UC Health in Fort Collins, Colorado, where she died from her injuries later that day.
Hospital staff said the bullet wound — which was behind and above McIntosh’s right ear above her neck — did not appear to be a “contact wound,” consistent with attempted suicide using firearms, and no wound was noted upon discharge, the Tribune reported.
The grieving father told law enforcement officials, “I don’t want to think about what I think happened… I don’t even want to put it into words… And I don’t want to think about it because it’s a really ridiculous thing for a parent to think about…”
“It would be much easier to accept that she killed herself than it would be for my son to try to kill her,” he said, according to court documents.
Bond was set at $500,000 for the teen, according to Oil City News.