High school football star tragically dies in shooting

A high school football star from New Jersey was tragically killed in a shooting last week, police announced on Monday.

According to the Camden County Prosecutors' Office in Camden, N.J., 16-year-old Xyere Brooks died after he was shot at around 12:30 p.m. on Friday inside an apartment. Authorities say they are still investigating the circumstances surrounding the shooting, 6ABC Action News in Philadelphia reports.

Police said multiple juveniles were inside the home at the time a gun went off. Manazh Tompkins, Brooks' brother, indicated that the shooting was an accident.

"She put the gun to his head, and I guess she didn't expect it to go off. To make a long story short, the gun went off on my brother, and he's no longer here with us," Tompkins told 6ABC Action News.

Brooks' mother, Antoinette Brooks, also made a comment about the tragedy. 

"These parents that are leaving their unsupervised teenage kids at home and not knowing what they may come into their homes with, there has to be a better way," Antoinette Brooks said.

Antoinette Brooks and Tompkins said Xyere Brooks excelled both on and off the field at Kipp High School in Camden. They said he had spoken with Syracuse and Rutgers about playing football in college.

No charges had been filed in the case as of Monday evening, with investigators saying they were still working to understand what led to the tragic incident.