In the late evening hours in the East Germantown neighborhood of Philadelphia, the life of 9-year-old Rajib Ingram was tragically cut short. On Tuesday, May 26, 2020, while in his bedroom, the young male came into contact with a handgun. Alone in his room and making videos on his phone, Rajib was handling the firearm when it discharged, inflicting a fatal gunshot wound to his face.
The sound of the gunshot brought his 15-year-old brother to the room, where he made the devastating
discovery. Emergency services were called, and Rajib was rushed to a nearby hospital, but his injuries proved to be too severe, and he was pronounced dead.
In the immediate aftermath, the handgun used in the incident was missing. The investigation into the circumstances of the shooting quickly focused on Syiede Booker, the 30-year-old boyfriend of Rajib's mother, Ashley Hicks. Hicks informed police that the firearm belonged to Booker. According to a police report, after the shooting, Hicks instructed her older son to move the gun, which he then threw into his mother's bedroom.
Initially, Booker denied owning the gun and lied to investigators about his role in the tragic event. However, the investigation determined that he had left the deadly weapon accessible to the children. Two days after Rajib's death, Syiede Booker was arrested and faced a series of charges, including involuntary manslaughter, endangering the welfare of a child, and recklessly endangering another person. Additional charges were filed for unsworn falsification, tampering with evidence, and obstruction of justice for his initial dishonesty with law enforcement. Booker was held on $1.1 million bail.
