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NEED TO KNOW
- Eric Patterson is accused of shooting the pregnant mother of his children as she slept
- He allegedly called the victim’s mother after the shooting and apologized
- The couple’s 9-year-old told police she woke up to a “bang” and saw her mother holding her stomach and crying
A Florida man is under arrest after his pregnant girlfriend and her unborn child survived being shot in both of their abdomens.
The victim, who has not been publicly named, was dropped off at a hospital in Brandon, Fla., early morning on Saturday, Nov. 22,the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.
The bullet “passed through the abdomen of the woman – who was about eight months pregnant – and the abdomen of the unborn child,” authorities alleged in a court document obtained by PEOPLE.
Police promptly identified 44-year-old Eric Patterson as a suspect, the sheriff’s office said in their statement.He was arrested on Tuesday.
According to the sheriff’s office, Patterson allegedly called the victim’s mother after the shooting and apologized for his actions.
the couple’s 9-year-old child told police she woke up to a “bang” and saw her mother holding her stomach and crying,