Selfie inflicted: Houston teenager posing for photos with gun shoots himself dead

A Houston teenager posing for selfies with a gun was killed when it went off.

The 19-year-old was at an apartment in the city on Tuesday afternoon when the weapon fired, hitting him in the throat.

Media reports named the man as Deleon Alonso Smith, who had two young children and had been scheduled to start college on Wednesday.

“It’s the worst feeling in my life,” his uncle, Eric Douglas, told KPRC local news.

“It’s a numb feeling. It’s still unbelievable. Yesterday was my birthday and he came to wish me happy birthday, and now this kind of news,” Smith’s grandmother, Alma Douglas, told the station.

Investigators say Smith had found a gun and was taking pictures of himself and a cousin holding the weapon and posting them to online when the gun discharged, killing Smith. Investigators say the cousin was in another room when the gun fired.

Houston police said in a statement on Wednesday the man was found “in a bedroom of an apartment”. Paramedics then pronounced him deceased.