5-year-old shot and killed while outside on bike, 25-year-old charged with murder
Cannon Hinnant was reportedly just outside sitting on his bicycle when a man walked up to the 5-year-old and shot him.
WILSON, N.C. -- Cannon Hinnant, the 5-year-old boy who was tragically shot and killed in North Carolina last weekend, will be memorialized with a funeral Thursday and a candlelight vigil Friday night.
The shooting happened around 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 9.
When officers arrived, they found Cannon suffering from a gunshot wound. Officers and EMS immediately began performing lifesaving efforts.
The boy was taken to the hospital, where he later died.
Neighbor Charlene Walburn said another neighbor told her that a man walked up to Cannon and shot him.
"Our neighbor saw it. She said the young man just walked up to the little boy who was sitting on his bike, which he does every day," Walburn said. "I just don't understand why he did it. How can you walk up to a little boy, point blank, and put a gun to his head and just shoot him? How could anyone do that?"
"We were eating our dinner and heard a bang," Walburn continued. "We knew it was a gunshot. So I told him to call 911, and I ran to the door."
A suspect, 25-year-old Darius Sessoms, was arrested a day after the shooting on charges of first-degree murder.
Walburn recalled spending time with Cannon.
"He would come over, him and my husband would always talk back and forth, and he would ask my husband to put air in his tire," she said. "If he saw me on the porch with a Popsicle, he would always come over and ask me if he could have a Popsicle."
A vigil for Cannon is set for Thursday at 8 p.m. His mother posted to social media that she wanted as many people as possible to show up to the vigil to show love for Cannon.
"I want everyone to show up for my baby. If you love me and have any heart at all or loved my child, please show up," she wrote.
A funeral for Cannon is scheduled for Thursday night.
His death has picked up coverage from various nationwide outlets. The boy's family, friends and the city of Wilson, where he was from, have drawn sympathy from all over the country.
