7-year-old shoots, seriously injures older brother in Brooklyn Park: Police

BROOKLYN PARK, Minn. (FOX 9) - A 7-year-old boy shot his brother in the head late Monday night in Brooklyn Park, according to police. 

The Brooklyn Park Police Department said officers responded to a shooting on the 7500 block of Fremont Avenue North around 10:40 p.m. and found a 9-year-old with a gunshot wound to the head.

Officers rendered aid to the boy, who they described as "conscious and alert." He was transported to a local hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries. Police said the child remains hospitalized in stable condition as of Tuesday morning and is "undergoing testing to determine the extent of the injuries." 

Police said preliminary information suggests the boy’s 7-year-old brother found a handgun inside a bedroom in the residence and had been handling the firearm when it went off, striking the 9-year-old. Authorities did not say who owned the firearm. 

Police said the shooting remains under investigation. 

According to the Gun Violence Archive, at least 470 children 11 years old and under have been shot and injured in the United States so far this year.