Teen shot in the eye with a BB gun dies days later

One week after being shot in the eye with a BB gun, 17-year-old Ivan Johnson died from his injuries in the hospital, a family friend confirmed.

Johnson was hit by a BB gun pellet in the Bank of America parking lot at 100 N. Westshore Blvd. in Tampa, when an 8-year-old accidentally set off the gun in the car while his father used the ATM. Johnson knew the 8-year-old and his father because they lived nearby. Police said an investigation is ongoing.

Timothy Howard Jr., a friend of Johnson’s family, said Johnson was a good, respectful kid who cared about music. A GoFundMe set up to raise money for Johnson’s funeral mentions he played the organ in his church congregation for nine years. He also liked to put together rap songs in his spare time.

Johnson had hoped to start his own landscaping company, Howard said. He started saving money for equipment and drafted a business plan.

“He had everything planned out, he had his to-do list of goals and he was marking everything off the list,” Howard said.

Johnson was the youngest sibling in his family and had three older sisters.

The organs from his body went on to help nine children and their families, Howard said.

“Ivan was a good kid, he stayed out of trouble,” Howard said. “He didn’t put himself in dangerous situations. He wasn’t running around the city playing with BB guns, doing dumb things like that. It was just really unexpected for the family.”