Background: News footage of the Columbus, Ohio, home where Amya Frazier was shot on Dec. 5 (WSYX). Inset (left): Amya Frazier (GoFundMe). Inset (right): Matthew Seymour (Franklin County Sheriff”s Office).
An Ohio girl died after her teenage cousin accidentally shot her earlier this month. Her uncle now faces felony charges.
Matthew Seymour, 33, was charged on Friday with involuntary manslaughter and endangerment of a child in connection with the shooting death of his niece, 11-year-old Amya Frazier. According to reporting by the Columbus Dispatch, Amya was allegedly shot by her 14-year-old cousin on Dec. 5 and died on Dec. 8. The teenager was arrested and charged with reckless homicide.
Before Seymour was arrested, he spoke with the local news outlet and provided details about the days leading up to Amya’s death.
Seymour told the Columbus Dispatch that he was not home on the night of Dec. 5, but another unidentified adult was home with his son and Amya. While that adult was in the shower, Seymour’s son “grabbed the gun and decided to play with it.”
According to a media release from the Columbus Division of Police, officers responded to a home in Columbus, Ohio, at 6:26 p.m. on Dec. 5, and found Amya with a “life-threatening” gunshot wound. Days after she died from her injuries, police named her 14-year-old cousin, who is also Seymour’s son, as the one who allegedly fired the gun. Seymour’s son is currently being held in juvenile detention.
In his interview with the Columbus Dispatch, Seymour said that he had taken the gun out of its lockbox at 3 a.m. the morning of the shooting because the dogs were reacting to something outside. Instead of returning the firearm to its lockbox, Seymour left it on a mini fridge, where his son later found it. He maintained that the shooting was an “accident,” but conceded, “There’s nothing that me nor my son can do to make this go away.”
Seymour added, “I’m ready for any consequences that come my way. I just don’t want my son to lose his life over this.”
Seymour was charged with involuntary manslaughter and endangerment of a child. He is in custody at the James A. Karnes Correction Center, where he is being held without bond. His arraignment is scheduled for Dec. 26.
