A North Carolina man was apprehended in Florida for allegedly shooting a six-year-old whose basketball rolled into his yard.
On Thursday, Robert Louis Singletary turned himself in to authorities in Tampa, Florida. The 24-year-old is being accused of firing his weapon at a young girl playing near his Gaston County home. One teenage witness claims Singletary became upset when her ball rolled onto his property. Singletary had previously complained about children’s toys ending up in his yard. CNN reports that he yelled at children entering his yard to retrieve their toys. When a parent confronted him about cursing at the kids, another neighbor said they saw Singeltary come outside with a gun. In addition to shooting the child, identified as Kinsley Hilderbrand, her mother, Ashley Hilderbrand, was grazed by a bullet. Sadly, the little girl’s father, William “Jamie” White was shot in the back. He remains hospitalized.
Despite the neighbors’ account, police have not confirmed that the shooting was over a ball. Singletary was new to the neighborhood and described as someone who “hated children,” frequently yelling at youngsters and appearing angry when they were around his house. Since Tuesday’s shooting, Singletary had been on the run, at some point making his way to Florida. It’s unclear what ties he has to the state, if any.
Singletary has been charged with multiple counts of attempted first-degree murder, assault with a deadly weapon, and possession of a firearm. He remains in the Hillsborough County Jail awaiting extradition back to North Carolina.
