BELIEVE IT OR NOT, AUTHORITIES SAY A SEVENTEEN-YEAR-OLD BOY SHOT AND KILLED FOURTEEN-YEAR-OLD ZYTINA MASON-BROWN AS SHE FILMED TIKTOK VIDEOS… AND HE HAS NOW BEEN CHARGED WITH SECOND-DEGREE MURDER WHILE ARMED.
The Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia announced the charges against the 17-year-old male in connection with the 2025 fatal shooting.
The victim, 14-year-old Zytina Mason-Brown, was allegedly shot while filming TikTok videos, according to authorities.
On May 21, 2025, police officers responded to a report of a shooting at a home located on Benning Road.
The emergency call brought responding officers to the scene around 5:08 p.m.
Upon entering the Benning Road residence, officers found “a juvenile female victim.”
Police reported that the victim was “unconscious and not breathing.”
She was also found “suffering from a critical gunshot wound,” according to a department press release.
Emergency responders declared the juvenile victim dead at the scene.
Police later formally identified the deceased girl as 14-year-old Mason-Brown.
On August 19, 2025, the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner determined that Mason-Brown died by homicide.
That ruling from medical examiners came months after her death, according to police.
More than one year later, authorities arrested a 17-year-old male suspect in connection with the incident.
Police stated that the suspect was charged with second-degree murder while armed.
On Wednesday, August 26, the Metropolitan Police Department announced the arrest in a news release.
On Thursday, August 27, a post-arrest hearing took place in the case.
During the hearing, an MPD detective testified regarding the statements collected during the investigation, according to ABC 7.
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The detective testified that the male suspect initially told police that Mason-Brown accidentally shot herself.
The suspect told authorities that the girl was playing with a handgun he had gotten from his uncle.
A female who was inside the room at the time of Mason-Brown’s death corroborated the boy’s account at first, the detective said.
But the witness went back to police months later and provided new details that conflicted with the suspect’s original claims.
According to the witness, Mason-Brown was actively making TikTok videos inside the room.
The suspect, who was 15 years old at the time, allegedly began to dance close to her.
Mason-Brown then allegedly pushed the 15-year-old boy away from her, the witness said.
Then the boy allegedly responded to the push by shooting her, according to the witness’s updated account.
And the detective testified that the witness claimed the boy’s mother started knocking on the door after hearing the gunshot.
The suspect allegedly ordered the female witness not to speak following the gunfire, the detective testified.
Police officers were dispatched to the residence soon after the shooting occurred.
In June, authorities arrested the female witness after she allegedly lied to investigators, according to ABC 7.
Because of the suspect’s age, the Metropolitan Police Department has not released his name publicly.
It is not currently clear whether prosecutors will seek to charge the 17-year-old as an adult.
It is also not currently clear whether the suspect has entered a plea following his arrest.
It is not known whether the teenager has retained legal counsel, according to the reporting.
The Metropolitan Police Department stated that it had no additional updates to share when contacted by Us.
The charges are allegations and have not been proven in court.
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