An Arkansas man is accused of shooting a 4-year-old boy in the foot and then rearranging the scene where it happened, authorities said.
Noah Michael Veuthey, 18, of Fouke was arrested Monday on charges of second-degree battery and tampering with physical evidence, the Hot Springs Sentinel-Record reported Wednesday.
The boy was treated at CHI St. Vincent Hot Springs on Saturday for a gunshot wound to his right foot.
Veuthey told investigators on Monday that the gun — .40-caliber Beretta — went off accidentally as he leaned over a bed at a Garland County residence, authorities reported. The bullet hit the boy as the youth slept on the floor nearby, according to a probable cause affidavit cited by the newspaper.
Police say Veuthey also told officers he left with the weapon after placing a separate handgun and a spent shell that went with it on the floor in the area. The affidavit didn't detail why Veuthey did so, the newspaper noted.
Veuthey was no longer listed as an inmate at the Garland County jail on Wednesday morning.