ORLANDO, FL – An 18-year-old man is accused of fatally shooting a 4-year-old boy inside an apartment after a gun went off while he was handling it, according to an arrest affidavit detailing the events that unfolded at the Stella West Apartments. Brandon Sir Neveah McCloud was taken into custody Wednesday in connection with the death of Kayden Pearson, who was struck in the chest and later pronounced dead at a hospital.

Officers responded around 11:30 a.m. on July 17 to reports of a child shot. When they arrived, they found a woman carrying an unresponsive boy through a parking lot. Paramedics attempted lifesaving measures before transporting the child, but doctors later declared him dead.

Evidence and witness accounts shape investigation

Inside the apartment, investigators reported finding blood in the living room and bedroom, along with a spent shell casing in the trash. A family member at the scene told officers that McCloud may have been involved, leading police to locate him in a neighboring unit.

McCloud initially told investigators that he and his girlfriend had just returned from a store when they heard a gunshot and discovered the child had been shot. When pressed for more details, he requested an attorney and the interview ended, according to the affidavit.

Detectives continued to piece together what happened through witness interviews. A neighbor said people were knocking frantically on her door, telling her a child had been shot. She entered the apartment and saw the boy suffering from a gunshot wound before attempting to take him to the hospital. She encountered officers outside, who took over emergency care.

The apartment’s resident told investigators she had been in her bedroom making a cake when the child entered holding his stomach and collapsed. She said McCloud and his girlfriend were the only other people inside at the time.

Phone data and statements raise further questions

In an interview, McCloud’s girlfriend told officers the couple had returned from a store and were in a bedroom when the child followed them. She said she heard a gunshot while looking at her phone and then saw the boy had been shot. Investigators noted she acknowledged seeing McCloud with a gun earlier in the day but gave inconsistent statements about whether he was holding it at the time.

Detectives later reviewed McCloud’s phone and found a video recorded about 75 minutes before the shooting that allegedly showed him appearing impaired while smoking marijuana. Investigators also identified an internet search conducted minutes after the shooting.

“This brief interval represented a critical period during which life-saving aid could have been rendered to Kayden,” investigators wrote in the affidavit. “Instead, the search demonstrates that Brandon used his phone to seek information regarding the removal of gunpowder residue from his person during the immediate aftermath of the shooting. This showed Brandon’s mentality was focused on escaping guilt rather than taking the opportunity to preserve life, adding to a consciousness of guilt.”

Investigators concluded that McCloud’s “reckless handling of a loaded firearm directly and proximately caused” the child’s death.

McCloud remains in the Orange County Jail without bond and is scheduled to appear before a judge on Monday.

Orlando child shooting, Brandon McCloud arrest, Kayden Pearson death, Florida manslaughter case, Stella West Apartments incident

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