Shaq paying for funeral of teen who accidentally shot himself on Instagram Live

On Thursday night, Shaquille O’Neal came to the home of the Georgia teen who accidentally shot himself on Instagram Live to offer his help paying for the funeral services.

Malachi Hemphill’s godmother, Shantirea Bankston, told NBC 11 that the basketball legend’s generosity took the family entirely by surprise.

“We just broke down and started crying because Malachi didn’t have any insurance,” Bankston said. “We weren’t prepared to bury him this young. We didn’t have insurance for him. So to have that from Shaquille O’Neal it was a blessing and very touching, and we appreciate everything he do for the community.”

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O’Neal said in a statement that he wanted to do his part to help the grieving family after hearing about the incident, saying, “No mother should have to go through this. I can only imagine the pain that she and all of Malachi’s family must be feeling.”

Malachi was only 13 years old when he died after accidentally shooting himself while playing with a gun. He was filming himself on Instagram Live with the weapon when his friends warned him to put the safety on, and the gun apparently went off when he tried to do so. His mother does not know how her son got his hands on the gun.

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