Basketball great Shaquille O’Neal is lending his massive helping hands to the parents of Malachi Hemphill, the 13-year-old boy who accidentally and fatally shot himself on Instagram Live this week.
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He’s offered to cover the child’s funeral expenses, and he made a visit Friday to Hemphill’s family in the Atlanta area. The Inside the NBA commentator has a long history of generous acts.
“No mother should have to go through this,” the Hall of Famer told WXIA. “I can only imagine the pain that she and all of Malachi’s family must be feeling. I just wanted to do what I could to help them at such a terrible time.”
Hemphill’s godmother, Shantirea Bankston, was thankful.
“We just broke down and started crying because Malachi didn’t have any insurance,” she said. “We weren’t prepared to bury him this young. We didn’t have insurance for him. So to have that from Shaquille O’Neal, it was a blessing and very touching, and we appreciate everything he does for the community.”
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It’s been reported that possibly 10-15 of his friends witnessed the death live, and there’s a current investigation on how Hemphill acquired the firearm.
