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A Macon, Ga., teen shot to death a 7-year-old boy his mother had been babysitting before turning the gun on himself.
Vonn Gibbons Jr., 19, was at his mother's home as she cared for Jalen Griffin. Gibbons, for no apparent reason, decided to fatally shoot Griffin in the head, then shoot himself in the chest.
Both boys were killed instantly.
Gibbon's mother, Cheryl Cole (pictured above, center), told police she was asleep and didn't hear the gunshots. The distraught mom also claimed she was totally unaware that her son even kept a gun in her home.
Investigators are speculating why Gibbons shot the young boy intentionally, but so far there is no motive. Bibb County Coroner Leon Jones told WMAZ-TV:
"We have no idea as to why. We probably will never get the answers, the truth about this. We just don't know."
Reportedly, Gibbons and the boy were close friends despite the age difference, they played together all the time. Gibbons attended Macon State College and managed to maintain good grades.
Meanwhile, Cole, too, is puzzled about the killings and struggling to come to grips with what happened. She was questioned by police for more than two hours before being allowed to return to her home. "I just want my baby back," said the inconsolable mother.
Autopsies are being conducted on both bodies. Macon police will continue to investigate the shootings.
Watch the tragedy here:
Comments: (73)
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By: alie on 12/20/2010 11:42AM
This may sound sick but do you think some kind of sexual abuse was going on?
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By: ananda on 12/20/2010 12:10PM
That's exactly what I thought when I first heard about it. Either he did, or tried to, molest the little boy and killed him when he did not go along with keeping it a secret.
I know it's speculation, but I can't think of anything else. And now relaizing how widespread male on male sexual abuse is...I think that may have been the case.
And to the author, the 19 year old was a grown man, not a boy.
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By: tammy on 12/20/2010 10:59PM
i do there is no other explanation,i've seen a lot of abuse in my own family so i believe this was it
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By: Mimi on 12/21/2010 7:50AM
MY THOUGHTS EXACTLY. NOTHING ELSE MAKES ANY SENSE.
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By: westfall on 12/21/2010 11:00AM
@Ali I was thinking the same thing. I thought at first that the 19 year old was mentally slow, then the article stated that he was attending college. Maybe he used the boy to gain courage to commit suicide. I any case, the mother should not have been asleep while that child was in her care.
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By: LadyJ on 12/21/2010 11:20AM
That was the first thing that came to my mind that the 19 yrs old young man was molesting the 7 yrs old boy and new the 7 yrs old boy was going to tell on him & he didn't want to go to jail and end up in the same position there the 7 yrs old boy was in with him.
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By: Danielle on 12/21/2010 11:19AM
I agree with you two on that..It seems he was doing this to the child and took it to far this time..And the child was hurt bad. I have read so much on this type of crime and the one thats doing the bad things to the kids take small steps to get to the big picture on rape..I think it was a touch thing then he went to far he was scared of the child telling on him and thought if he did this there was nothing he could lose by it..My heart go out to the mother..But come guys she had to seen some signs of her child being messed with..1 with drawing from that person and staying out his way when he comes over..now what would a 19 year old spend so much time with a 7 year old? now i know it has happen to others and it was just playing games but guys the truth will come out and i think we all are on the right track with the truth..
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By: lvalentine on 12/21/2010 1:34PM
The first thing that came to my mind, if he killed this child, then killed himself was he covering up some sort of sexual assult he may have done to the child. There appears to be no other explanation. That or it was an accident and he was afraid of going to jail and killed himself. If the mom says she didn't notice any kind of depression issues from the 19 year old, then what else could it be. They say the 19 year old and the 7 year old were "close and he played with him a lot" The only thing I could think of is first an accident, playing with the gun, killing himself in fear of going to jail or upset that he did this to his friend. I would hope this was the reason, but I keep coming back to the same thought that it may have been more than that and some sexual abuse accured and the man was ashamed and afraid the child would tell. What I do know is this sort of thing is hardest on the ones left behind. This is just tragic and I pray for those family members. God rest that little boys soul. We live in a cruel world and I know he is at peace in the wonderful arms of God.
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By: jemimah on 12/21/2010 3:07PM
That the two 'were very close and played together all the time' raises a red flag to me. Forensics will tell the story. But, if he did molest the child, odds are he himself was somebody's victim.
I hope the mother of the 7 yo does not seek revenge against the other woman - I know if I were in her shoes I would have to be restrained from at least kicking her...
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By: lamar on 12/21/2010 7:40PM
let's not always think of things as sexually motivated y'all! I'm sure we can think of other scenarios..do we know the mental state of the 19 yr. old? Maybe it was a stupid tragic shooting accident and afterwards, he just couldn't live with it..it was said that the two were close..maybe the man was just too distraught and shocked at what he had done by accident..maybe showing off the weapon that his mother didn't know was in the house..being a show off "big brother" but the safety was off or something.. man on boy abuse is nothing new and it is NOT on the rise..it's always been, it's just being reported more as the new thing to get reader's attention.. open your imaginations to see other possibilities people.
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