A 4-year-old boy is in critical condition after accidentally shooting himself in the face with a loaded handgun he found in his father's furniture chest, Houston police officials said.

"I was careless for one minute. I was careless," the boy's father, Jose Luis Nunez, told reporters.

The boy reportedly climbed onto a tall dresser in his parents' apartment and discovered a hidden handgun just before midnight Tuesday. He then accidentally fired the weapon at his head, according to the Houston Police Department's official press release. 

"The child was supposed to be asleep in the room. The parents were outside of the room in different areas of the house and heard the discharge, heard what they thought was a gunshot, and entered the room and fund the child inside with the injury," Sgt. Brian Evans told NBC station WWLP 22.

The boy's father called 911 immediately after he found his seriously wounded son. He was taken to Children's Memorial Hermann Hospital, where he remains in critical condition.

A 2-year-old child was asleep in the same room where the shooting took place but was not injured, WWLP 22 reported.

No charges have been filed, but the matter will be reviewed by the Harris County District Attorney's Office, according to police officials.

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