Child playing in cemetery killed when tombstone falls on him

LYNN, Ark. – Authorities say an 8-year-old boy who was playing in a church cemetery was killed after a tombstone broke and fell on top of him.

The Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office says the boy was attending a birthday party at the church Saturday afternoon when the accident happened in the town of Lynn, about 100 miles northeast of Little Rock. Detective Andrew Turner tells Jonesboro television station KAIT (http://bit.ly/2hlgSzd ) the boy was taken to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Turner says investigators do not believe foul play was involved. The boy’s name hasn’t been released.

The church’s pastor, Jeff Neely, says the boy was “full of life” and “just an 8-year-old rambunctious young man.” He says church members plan to support the boy’s family, both financially and in prayer.