Charges: St. Paul man left kids alone, guns accessible before boy was shot in face

A man is now facing criminal charges in connection to a shooting at a St. Paul apartment on Friday night that left an 11-year-old critically hurt.

Martinez Castillo Lloyd, 34, is charged with illegal gun possession and negligent storage of a gun following the incident.

Prosecutors say that Lloyd’s children and several of their friends — ranging in age from 10 to 13 — were at his apartment in the 800 block of Pierce Butler Road starting at around 8:20 p.m. After about 30 minutes, Lloyd left and went to a store, leaving the kids by themselves.

Charging documents state that, after Lloyd left, his son and niece went into his room and grabbed two guns that he kept in an unlocked drawer in his room. The documents note that the kids said they’ve played with the guns a dozen times in the past year, including the weekend prior.

Lloyd later told police that he’d seen his kids play with his guns before and told them to put them back.