A homeowner in Virginia has been accused of murder following the fatal shooting of a high school athlete. The teenager was out with friends filming pranks for TikTok in the early hours of a Saturday morning.
The suspect, Tyler Chase Butler, aged 27, was taken into custody on Tuesday and has been charged with second-degree murder, malicious wounding, and two counts of using a firearm. He allegedly shot at the group of teenagers, resulting in the death of 18-year-old Michael Bosworth Jr. and injuring another teen.
Bosworth was a senior at Massaponax High School, where the played lacrosse and football and wrestled.
According to reports from WRC, Butler claimed he believed the teens were attempting to break into his residence. The incident was reported to the Spotsylvania County Sheriff’s Office as a burglary in progress with gunshots being fired by a homeowner.
But after hearing the boys plead that they were just filming ding dong ditch pranks for TikTok,they arrested Butler. The third teen, who was not shot, showed them video of an earlier prank on his phone. Police did not say why the boys were in Butler’s back yard or how Butler could have known they were pranking him.
Neighbors told WTTG that other homeowners also thought the teens were trying to break in as they roamed around the neighborhood in the early hours of the morning.
“I’m sorry the kid did that,” said Shawn Morrell. “I wish he hadn’t done what he did because he had to pay the ultimate price. Nobody likes that. Nobody. Not even the homeowner.”
Meanwhile, Butler is being held without bond at the Rappahannock Regional Jail, WRC said.
