According to reports gathered, Matthew, who lives on Timothy Drive in Memphis’s Whitehaven neighborhood, alleged that he was checking his house for intruder when he saw his daughter’s silhouette in a closet, thinking it was a burglar, he shot her in the chest, hence, killing her.

He also claimed that he had kept the gun handy after the child’s mother had reported hearing a noise on August 27.

The victim, A’layla Bassett, was immediately rushed to the hospital but was pronounced dead shortly after her arrival at the Methodist South Hospital.

However, the police didn’t seem to believe the father’s story, so he was charged with reckless homicide while the case is still under investigation.