A 10-year-old West Virginia boy was found dead after he was reported missing while hunting with his grandfather this weekend.
Wyatt Eaves-Nibert went missing Saturday morning in Point Pleasant, the Mason County Sheriff’s Office told the West Virginia Metro News. He was found dead with a single gunshot wound early Sunday morning. Authorities have not said if they suspect foul play or if the shooting was an accident.
10-Year-Old Who Vanished on Hunting Trip with Grandfather Found Dead from Gunshot Wound https://t.co/XA764qTZaW
— People (@people) September 13, 2023
Wyatt and his grandfather had gone squirrel hunting Saturday morning, authorities said, when they received a call from the grandfather saying he had been in an ATV accident and needed help.
When police arrived, the man said he had been using the ATV to try to find his grandson, who had gone missing about an hour before.
Adrienne Nibert, Wyatt’s mother, told WCHS-TV that her son and his grandfather were eating lunch when the boy said he was going to walk and look for squirrels. When his grandfather finished eating and called out for Wyatt, he could not find him, she said.
“Wyatt was very trained on gun safety,” she told WCHS. “… He knew to carry the gun on his back with it pointed in the air. He had very good trigger discipline.”
“He always wanted to be a Marine,” Nibert told WOWK-TV. “He would always tell me, mom, when I turn eighteen, I’m going to be a Marine. Everybody at school loved him. He was so respectful. He put everybody else first.”
He is survived by his parents, two siblings, two grandparents, three great-grandparents and a great-great-grandmother. He was in fifth grade at Roosevelt Elementary School in Mason County.
WSAZ-TV reported that Wyatt’s body was taken to the state medical examiner’s office for further investigation. The Mason County Sheriff’s Office is continuing to investigate Wyatt’s death.
