AN 11-year-old Maryland boy died today after he was accidentally shot in the head by his eight-year-old brother, The Aegis reported.

The two children were playing in the woods in Pylesville, about 40 miles (64km) northeast of Baltimore, when the older boy was shot shortly before 7.20am local time, Harford County Sheriff's Office spokesperson Monica Worrell said. The victim, identified as Michael Szoke, died before he could be flown to Johns Hopkins Pediatric Center in Baltimore, Worrell said. Police were unsure of exactly where the shooting occurred and searched a "really remote area" of the woods with a police dog and a helicopter before finding the injured boy and a handgun on the ground nearby, she said. Authorities said the boys had taken the handgun from a secured area of their elderly neighbour's property, the newspaper reported. A police investigation has found the shooting was accidental and no charges have been filed.