The father of the teen accused in his friend's accidental death says the boys didn't realize they were playing with a loaded gun.

As News 12 has reported, 19-year-old Steafon Lewis is charged with manslaughter and criminal weapon possession in the shooting death of 17-year-old Ackeem Davis. Despite the charges, police have said they believe the shooting at the Pelham Parkway Houses was accidental.

Lewis' family shared his side of the story exclusively with News 12. They say they're distraught, and that the two boys were best friends.

"It was all playing, they was playing with a loaded gun, they didn't know it was loaded. My son is a good kid," Lewis' father said.

The teen's grandmother said he tearfully asked for forgiveness. "He said, 'Mama, I never held a gun. They told me there was no bullet in the gun,'" she told News 12.

Police say the gun was already in Davis' apartment and they still have not recovered it.

Davis' 18th birthday would have been Tuesday.