Duane “Dog” Chapman, the reality star known as “Dog the Bounty Hunter,” is mourning the loss of his 13-year-old step-grandson after a tragic shooting over the weekend.

Anthony Zecca was fatally shot by his father Gregory Zecca, the son of Chapman’s wife Francie Frane, in Naples, Florida. Authorities are calling the incident a ‘freak accident’ that occurred in their apartment, according to Independent.

The shooting happened around 8 p.m. on Saturday night, reports say.

Chapman confirmed the tragedy to TMZ through a representative, stating: “We are grieving as a family over this incomprehensible tragic accident and would ask for continued prayers as we grieve the loss of our beloved grandson, Anthony.”

The 73-year-old Chapman, who rose to fame through his A&E reality show “Dog the Bounty Hunter” (2004-2012) and subsequent series, married Frane in 2021.

Their relationship began after both had experienced significant losses—Chapman’s fifth wife Beth Smith died of throat cancer, while Frane had lost her husband Bob to cancer in 2018.

In a 2020 interview with Entertainment Tonight, Frane described how their shared grief brought them together.

“We understood the pain that the other one was feeling and [in] those tough days and moments, we helped each other stand up. We could cry with each other and talk about what we were feeling.”

Chapman, a former felon and professional bounty hunter, quickly integrated Frane and her family into his lifestyle. In a 2020 interview with Dr. Mehmet Oz, Chapman noted that Frane and her sons were hunters who “track, they look for things that the prey leaves behind,” adding that “she just fit right in.”

This story was written with the assistance of AI.