Boy, 18, is left paralyzed from waist down after water pistol prank in Walmart parking lot erupted into real gunfire
A high school senior has been left paralyzed from waist down after a water pistol fight escalated into a real shooting in a Walmart parking.
Anakin Zehring and his friends were shooting a toy water gel blaster at two other teens on May 11 at the Walmart Supercenter in Goddard, Kansas when things took a turn for the worse.
One of the teens that Anakin and his friends got with the water gun reportedly ended up calling a relative who allegedly shot the 18-year-old with a real gun while he was sitting in the driver’s seat of a blue car.
The Sedgwick County Sheriff's Office has since arrested Ruben Contreras, 47, in connection to the shooting and charged him with attempted first-degree murder.
Anakin Zehring and his friends were shooting a toy water gel blaster at two other teens when he was shot in the spine by one of the teens' relatives
The Sedgwick County Sheriff's Office has since arrested Ruben Contreras, 47, (pictured) in connection to the shooting and charged him with attempted first-degree murder
Anakin's father Jeremy Zehring explained what happened at the scene: 'I pulled up his locator on his car, and I noticed it was at the Goddard Walmart.
'So I started calling him and calling him. It kept going to voicemail.'
After hearing police reports that a shooting occurred in the same parking lot, the distressed father frantically reached the area.
'I tried to rush to the car, but they stopped me, they said it was an investigation. I was like, well, where's my son? And they're like Anakin. I said Yes. Where's my son? And they're like, well, he's been transported to the hospital,' he told KAKE.
The teen's mother, Kenly has since revealed that the bullet caused significant damage to Anakin's body.
His duodenum (upper part of the small intestine) was left punctured and spinal cord damaged which caused loss of sensation from the waist down.
The teen was a senior at Campus High School and planned to become an engineer after graduating
The teen's mother, Kenly has since revealed that the bullet caused significant damage to Anakin's body - forcing doctors to fuse his L1, L2, and L3 spinal bones
To ensure Anakin survived, doctors were forced to fuse his L1, L2, and L3 spinal bones.
'The other day, he closed his eyes, he said, "Mom, every time I close my eyes, I tell my legs to move for me, and they don’t move."
'So it's very hard for him, very hard; I mean, it's sad that he has to go through this,' she said.
After spending three weeks at St. Francis, Anakin has now been transferred to the Madonna Rehabilitation Facility in Omaha for his recovery.
'He's nervous, because he doesn't really know where he's at, doesn't really know what's happening with him.
'So they're trying to get his pain under control,' Jeremy said.
Contreras allegedly shot Anakin while he was sitting in the driver’s seat of a blue car
Even though Anakin could not attend his graduation ceremony, his school counselor arranged for one in the hospital
According to the GoFundMe launched by Anakin's parents, he will be requiring extensive physical therapy, occupational therapy and skilled nursing care to recover.
As of now, the fundraising page has raised $8,705 out of its $50,000 goal
The teen was a senior at Campus High School and planned to become an engineer after graduating.
Even though Anakin could not attend his graduation ceremony, his school counselor arranged for one in the hospital.
'Haysville, they came to the hospital and graduated him there. Okay, that school means so much to me and my children.
'I've had tons of kids go through there. And they deserve recognition for what they've done. Because they didn't have to come there. They didn't have to do that. And it made my son feel good. I haven't seen him smile in weeks until that happened,' said Anakin's tearful father.
The accused remains out on bond and a court date has not been set yet.
