PD: Man killed teen while playing with Nerf gun, 9mm handgun

PHOENIX (AZFamily) — A teen boy is dead after he was allegedly shot by a man playing with a Nerf gun and a 9mm handgun at a Phoenix apartment complex early Sunday afternoon. The victim has been identified as 13-year-old Earlric Reynolds.

Police responded to an apartment complex near 7th Avenue and Mountain View Road around 1:15 p.m., and found Reynolds in the parking lot suffering from a gunshot wound. He died a short time later at the hospital.

“Knowing that the little kid was shot, it’s kind of saddening. Like such a young life, could’ve had so much to do,” said Rachel Raimondo, a woman who lives in the area.

The suspect, 18-year-old Adolfo Villalva, told officers he accidentally shot Reynolds with a 9mm Ruger handgun he had brought with him.

Adolfo Villalva, 18, was arrested after he allegedly shot and killed a 13-year-old boy during... — Adolfo Villalva, 18, was arrested after he allegedly shot and killed a 13-year-old boy during a Nerf gun fight at a Phoenix apartment complex.(Maricopa County Sheriff's Office)

Police say Villalva and two other witnesses then moved Reynolds to the parking lot. One neighbor told Arizona’s Family that he saw Reynolds bleeding on the ground.

Detectives say Villalva hid the gun under a water bucket in the backyard before officers arrived. The gun was found after Villalva told them where it was. He was then taken into custody.

“Any death is a tragedy, but when they’re that young, it just definitely hits a different heartstring,” said Sgt. Philip Krynsky with the Phoenix Police Department.

During an interview with investigators, Villalva said he drove to the apartment complex in his mother’s Buick and that he knew she kept a handgun under the driver’s seat. He reportedly took the gun out of its holster and put it in his pants pocket “because it looked cool.”

Per court documents, Villalva said he and Reynolds were playing with a Nerf gun in the living room. He told detectives that he took the Nerf gun away from Reynolds, then simultaneously pointed the Nerf gun and the 9mm at the boy. He said he thought he was pulling the trigger for the toy gun but pulled the handgun trigger instead.

Police first got called to the apartments for a stabbing, but according to court paperwork, dispatchers could hear a woman in the background saying her son had been shot and was bleeding from the mouth.

Villalva was booked into the Maricopa County jail on several felony charges, including manslaughter, misconduct involving weapons and tampering with evidence.

Court records show he has previous convictions for drug possession and aggravated robbery, making him a prohibited possessor of firearms.

People who live in the complex are in shock, and some say they feel unsafe. “I feel sorry for them. I have personally never seen something like that, but it’s gotta be heart wrenching,” said Raimondo.

Arizona’s Family talked with a woman who said that she called 911 and knew the boys. However, out of respect for the victim’s mother, she declined an interview.

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