Brother, another man charged in shooting death of 4-year-old in Coatesville

Chester County DA, Coatesville City Police announce arrests connected to shooting death of 4-year-old

Two men, including the four-year-old's older brother, have been arrested for the child's shooting death.

COATESVILLE, Pa. - Two men have been arrested and charged in connection to the shooting death of a four-year-old in Coatesville, the Chester County District Attorney announced Tuesday.

Police say officers from the Coatesville City Police Department were called to the 300 block of East Chestnut Street around 5 p.m. on February 28.

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Four-year-old Roman Aguilera-Ortiz was found shot once in the face and pronounced dead by paramedics, police say.

According to the DA, Aguilera-Ortiz's older brother, 18-year-old Victor Lara-Ortiz, was arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter, firearms not to be carried without a license, endangering the welfare of a child and other related offenses.

Police say Lara-Ortiz left his bedroom door open with a loaded gun unsecured on a table when the four-year-old found it and accidentally shot himself in the head.

"There were no safety precautions whatsoever to secure the gun in any way," Chester County District Attorney Deb Ryan said.

According to police, 31-year-old William Thomas was also arrested for selling the gun to Lara-Ortiz. He is charged with illegally purchasing and transferring the gun and delivering it to Lara-Ortiz, who was 17 at the time, the DA announced.

Using the ATF's database, police learned the gun was sold at the Trop Gun Shop in Gap, Pennsylvania, the DA announced.

Thomas, who purchased the gun, is not legally allowed to buy or have a gun due to a prior criminal conviction, according to the DA.

Investigators learned he used false information to purchase the weapon and illegally transferred the weapon to Lara-Ortiz on February 15, one day before the teen's 18th birthday.

Video found on Lara-Ortiz's cellphone showed him firing the same gun from a car in Valley Township on February 16, Ryan announced.

Police say Thomas tried to illegally purchase two other guns, with Lara-Ortiz accompanying him at a gunship, but he was denied after a background check.

Both men have been remanded to Chester County Prison after failing to post bail.

Preliminary hearings are set to begin on March 23.

Victor Lara-Ortiz (left) and William Thomas (center) have been arrested and charged in connection to the shooting death of 4-year-old Roman Aguilera-Ortiz (right).

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Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact Detective Sgt. Brandon Harris at 610-384-2300 ext. 3212