Stray bullet strikes 5-year-old in northeast Oklahoma, boy in stable condition

A five-year-old boy is recovering after being struck by a stray bullet in northeast Oklahoma.

The Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office says Fairland Police received a call of a child that had been shot while sleeping in his bed Wednesday morning.

An investigation found that a bullet was fired by a 16-year-old boy who was outside, 600 yards away, shooting at stray dogs that had been bothering his family livestock.

That shot missed the dogs, went through the child’s wall and struck the boy while he was in his bed.

The child that was shot was flown to a Joplin hospital before being transported to Springfield.

He was last listed in stable condition.

Authorities say both the juvenile that committed the shooting and his parents are being fully cooperative regarding the accident. Names of the victim or shooter have not been released.