Five-year-old boy is shot dead at point blank range by neighbour, 25, as he rides bike in his own front yard
North Carolina police have charged a neighbor with the murder of a five-year-old boy who was riding a bike in his own yard when he was shot at point blank range on Sunday evening.
Darius Sessoms, 25, was taken into custody by Wilson police around 24 hours after he allegedly approached Cannon Hinnant in front of the young boy's father's house at 5:30pm and shot him in the head.
Sessoms lived next door to the family, and the killing is not believed to be random. Neighbors claim he had dinner with Hinnant's father Austin on Friday and had been over at the house earlier on Sunday.
The motive for the killing is still under investigation, but a GoFundMe established by a family member says that the young boy rode into Sessoms' yard.
Sunday, August 9, 2020 a sweet soul named Cannon Hinnant was taken from this world over a senseless act,' it reads.
'A beautiful 5 year old baby boy riding his bicycle was shot by his neighbor point blank in Wilson NC. One minute he is enjoying his life, the next it all ends because he rode into his neighbors yard.'
The young boy was set to start Kindergarten on Monday and had just learned to write his name.
'He was just a loving kid,' his mother Bonny Waddell told the Wilson Times. 'He had the biggest heart.'
'It’s devastating. No one should ever have to bury their child. No mother should have to go through this.'
According to the Wilson Times, Sessoms was previously convicted of felony larceny of firearms in Wilson County in March 2016, misdemeanor maintaining a place for a controlled substance in Wake County in April 2016 and felony marijuana possession in Nash County in November 2016.
Court records also show that Sessoms has two pending counts of felony maintaining a vehicle, dwelling or place for a controlled substance in Wilson County.
Goldsboro Police Department, Wayne County Sheriff's Office and the U.S. Marshals Service task force assisted in his arrest.
'The Wilson Police Department sends its sincerest condolences and prayers to the family of Cannon during this tragic time,' a police spokesperson said Monday.
Neighbor Doris Labrant witnessed the shooting through her window from across the street.
She told WRAL she saw Sessoms run up to the young boy, put the gun to his head and fire before running back to his own house.
'My first reaction was he's playing with the kids,' Labrant said. 'For a second, I thought, "That couldn't happen". People don't run across the street and kill kids.'
On seeing Hinnant's father's reaction, however, she realized that the shooting was real and ran to lock herself inside and call 911.
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