Antone Little III, a 6-year-old boy from St. Louis, Missouri, was critically wounded in an accidental shooting inside a home in the 400 block of Midlothian Road in north St. Louis County. The shooting happened around 2:25 a.m. on Tuesday, May 26, 2026, when officers from the St. Louis County Police Department’s North County Precinct were called to the residence for a report of a shooting. When they arrived, they found Antone suffering from an apparent gunshot injury.
He had reportedly shot himself in the face after finding a loaded firearm inside the home.
Antone was rushed to an area hospital with life-threatening injuries and remained in critical condition. Although some memorial listings connect his death to the date of the shooting, police and local news reports stated that he died days later, around 1:30 a.m. on Friday, May 29, 2026, after medical efforts could not save him. His family later described the loss as an unimaginable tragedy and sought help with funeral and memorial expenses, remembering him as a beloved child whose life ended far too soon.
Investigators said the shooting centered on how the child gained access to the gun. According to reports based on the probable cause statement, 19-year-old Arquez Phipps told police the firearm belonged to him and that he had hidden it fully loaded between a mattress and box spring. Police recovered the firearm at the scene. The case was handled by detectives with the St. Louis County Police Department Bureau of Crimes Against Persons.
Phipps, who was also listed as living in the 400 block of Midlothian Road, was arrested and charged by the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office on May 26, 2026, the same day as the shooting. He was charged with first-degree endangering the welfare of a child resulting in serious physical injury. Reports stated he was held on a $20,000 cash-only bond with no 10% option. Authorities emphasized that the charge was an accusation and that Phipps was presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
No other suspects were publicly identified in the available reports, and the shooting was consistently described by police and local outlets as accidental rather than an intentional killing. The known criminal case focused on the alleged failure to safely secure a loaded firearm in a home where a young child could reach it.
