Four-year-old boy dies in Detroit after being shot by cousin who found gun in relative's home

A crime scene vehicle outside the house (AP)

A four-year-old has died in America after his cousin shot him whilst playing with a rifle she found at their grandparents' home.

Police said the boy and girl, also four, were watching TV and playing at the home in Detroit on Thursday afternoon.

Neither of them has been named.

According to the Reuters news agency, Detroit police Officer Nicole Kirkwood said the girl accidentally shot her cousin in the torso. The boy was pronounced dead after being taken to a nearby hospital.

The grandparents were not home at the time and had left the children in the care of a family friend, Kirkwood said

Detroit police Sgt. Michael Woody told the AP news agency: "It's a tragic incident. It's really not anything more than that.

"There was no malicious intent. There was nothing there to suggest that the grandfather put those children in harm's way, but the investigation will continue.

"This is a very senseless ... incident that could have been avoided."

The Wayne County prosecutor's office will determine whether charges should be brought