A Virginia man was gunned down at the hands of his best friend Tuesday, after being mistaken for an intruder.
Dinwiddie County Sheriff’s Maj. William Knott said that Matthew Allen Sharpf fatally shot his friend Jonathan Hankins through the door when he showed up late at night, unexpectedly.
“I don’t think he intended to shoot. The gun discharged; it may have been an accident,” Knott said.
Both the suspect and victims were 37 years old and longtime best friends. Family members were left saddened after learning that Sharpf mistakenly ended the life of his “dearest friend.”
Hankins and Sharpf knew each other since childhood; their relatives said adding that the victim was the “flower boy” in the shooter’s wedding.
“You find one real friend in life and that was Matt and John,” one said. “Matt loved John; he would never intentionally try to harm him. It’s devastating.”
Sharpf was arrested and charged with voluntary manslaughter. He was released on bond pending a preliminary hearing on July 26.
