Boy hospitalized after reportedly shooting himself in the foot

An 8-year-old boy was hospitalized after reportedly shooting himself in the foot with a gun he found in a playground Wednesday afternoon in the city's East Germantown section, police said.

However, no gun was immediately found and no witnesses could be located outside the crowded East Germantown Recreation Center, where the incident occurred sometime before 5 p.m., said Chief Inspector Scott Small.

Police were notified shortly after 5 p.m. that the boy had been brought to Einstein Medical Center by his family with a gunshot injury to his left foot.

The family told police that the boy was in the area of the rec center in the 1100 block of East Chelten Avenue with friends and family members when he discovered a bag with a gun inside, Small said.

The boy then took the gun out of the bag, according to the family, and accidentally shot himself, Small said.

The family took the wounded boy to a relative's house in the 6300 block of North 21st Street, then to the hospital, Small said.

There were more than 100 children playing organized football and many other children in the area, but police could find no witnesses or locate where the gun discharged, Small said.

Police secured the house on North 21st Street and a second location for possible warrants in search of the gun, Small said.

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