District Attorney Reports: 9-Year-Old Discovers Father’s Rifle and Fatally Shoots 5-Year-Old Sister

A father in Phoenix, Arizona, is facing charges after his 9-year-old son found his father’s AR-style rifle and tragically used it to shoot his 5-year-old sister, officials report.

Irvin Eduardo Ramos-Jimenez, 33, is facing felony charges concerning child abuse, domestic violence, and weapon-related misconduct as announced by Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell.

On June 3, the young boy allegedly discovered “an unsecured AR-style rifle” left by his father in the boy’s bedroom. At that time, Ramos-Jimenez was outside when he heard a sudden noise from inside, as reported by local news outlet Arizona’s Family. Ramos-Jimenez hurried into the room to discover that his daughter, Layla Ramos, had sustained a gunshot wound to the torso.

Neighbors are said to have seen the boy run out of the house screaming following the shooting.

Phoenix police officers responded to the intersection of 7th Avenue and Broadway Boulevard due to a report of a “critically injured child.”

Initially, Ramos-Jimenez informed investigators that his daughter had been stabbed, according to the local TV channel, and he was reported to have taken his daughter from their residence to rendezvous with medical responders.

Authorities located the father and daughter and verified that the girl had been shot. She was subsequently taken to a medical facility where Layla succumbed to her injuries, officials confirmed.

At the time of the shooting, Ramos-Jimenez was prohibited from owning or possessing a firearm “or any other weapon designed for lethal use,” the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office said. This was reportedly because he had been convicted of drug trafficking charges.

The suspect’s trial is scheduled to begin on March 5, 2026.

Layla was remembered in a fundraiser as “so loving, smart, and a truly beautiful soul” — a “little princess who got her wings way too soon.”