Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby were left shocked by the story of a six-year-old boy who was shot by his great grandfather.
Last year, Albert Grannon, 78, fired a shot at point blank range with an air rifle and hit his great grandson Stanley Metcalf.
Speaking on Tuesday’s This Morning, Stanley’s parents Jenny Dees and Andy Metcalf said their little boy died after the bullet severed a major artery which caused severe internal bleeding.
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Mr Grannon was in illegal possession of the rifle – which he modified – and during a family gathering, Stanley asked his great grandfather if he could see the weapon.
A few moments later, Jenny heard a loud bang and an ambulance was called after Stanley had been shot.
Within just two hours, Stanley was pronounced dead and Grannon was eventually charged in May of this year.
Last week, the 78-year-old was sentenced to three years in jail after pleading guilty to manslaughter.
Phil asked Jenny: “Why did he [Grannon] have that very powerful air rifle?”
Jenny replied: “It was stored behind a curtain in the hallway. He said he used it for shooting rabbits and things out in the countryside.”
Speaking about the moment he shot Stanley, Jenny continued: “I don’t think he thought anything. I think he just picked that air rifle up, pointed it at Stanley and pulled the trigger.
“He said he didn’t know [there was a pellet inside the rifle].
“I walked into the kitchen and [Stanley] had his arm over his tummy and he said, ‘grandad shot me.’ I said, ‘no grandad wouldn’t do that to you Stanley, grandad wouldn’t shoot you.’
“[Stanley] then looked up at his grandad and said, ‘why would you shoot me grandad?'”
She said: “I checked his top, there was no blood. I thought maybe he was play acting, I didn’t know. My mum took him off me, I saw him walk out of the kitchen door and his eyes rolled to the back of his head and his head went floppy.
“At that point I knew something was wrong.”
Jenny said she then realised there was a “small pellet wound about the size of a five pence piece” in Stanley’s stomach.
She added: “He suffered a cardiac arrest in the ambulance on the way to the hospital.”
Stanley passed away shortly after.
Following Stanley’s death, Grannon had been vocal on social media.
In October last year, Grannon wrote on Facebook: “I’m too old to worry about who likes me and who dislikes me.
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“I have more important things to do. If you hate me, I don’t care, life goes on with or without you.”
Phil said: “Whatever happened, he was incredibly careless.”
After Stanley’s tragic death, the family have launched a petition to introduce a new law to ensure every air rifle is properly licensed.
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