South Carolina 8-year-old fires 'assault rifle' over heads of pedestrians

Police in South Carolina have questioned an 8-year-old boy about reports that he was firing an "assault rifle" over the head of passing pedestrians on a street in Rock Hill.

According to The Herald, a man called police on Saturday afternoon to report that children had the weapon on Glenn Street.

After initially denying knowledge of the gunfire, one child eventually admitted to police that a weapon had been fired, a police reported stated.

The report said that the child took officers into his home, where they found a .22 caliber semi-automatic rifle underneath a bed. The gun reportedly had one round in the chamber and one round in the magazine.

Police also found two more rounds on the ground outside the home.

The boy's mother told officers that the children were being watched by a 13-year-old babysitter at the time of the incident. The gun was reportedly illegally owned by a convicted felon, the mother said.

No charges were filed against the boy, but the rifle was taken into custody.

The Rock Hill Police Department did not respond to Raw Story's questions about whether there was an ongoing investigation by the time of publication.

Update (4:30 p.m ET): The Rock Hill Police Department's Public Information Office told Raw Story that an investigation had been opened to determine the owner of the gun.

[Boy aiming a rifle (Shutterstock.com)]