A 16-year-old girl was found dead inside her home in Jefferson County, Missouri, after spending several hours without receiving help after suffering a gunshot wound to the head, authorities reported.

The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office indicated that deputies responded Saturday afternoon to a home on Tower Road, near Hillsboro, where they found Gabbriana Boyster dead.

Investigators believe that the young woman was shot on Friday night, when three minors who knew her were in the house.

The Jefferson County Juvenile Office reported that one of the teens was charged with involuntary manslaughter, unlawful use of a weapon resulting in death, armed criminal action and abandonment of a dead body.

The other two minors were accused of abandonment of a corpse and were later released.

Because they are all minors, authorities did not reveal their identities.

The mother found the body when she returned home

The teenager's mother, Candy G'Sell, was not at home when the incident occurred.

As he told KSDK, the last conversation he had with his daughter was on Friday night.

"He told me he was going to stay home. I told him to lock the door," he recalled.

When he returned to the home on Saturday afternoon he found his daughter's body and called the emergency service.

Paramedics confirmed the death of the young woman at the scene.

"I walked into the room and she was there... sitting. In the blink of an eye. She didn't deserve that," the mother said.

Authorities have not reported what caused the shooting. However, they pointed out that Gabbriana Boyster and the three minors involved previously knew each other.

The mother indicated that the teenagers were friends of her daughter.

"It's not a game. Guns are not toys," he said.

Sheriff's Office spokesman Grant Bissell said the case has left several families devastated.

"There is a family devastated by the loss of a loved one and three other families that could now be scarred by the consequences of the actions of these young people. No one wins in a situation like this," he declared.

Candy G’Sell remembered her daughter, known to her friends as “Gabby,” as a loving young woman who loved her family, deeply valued her friends and dreamed of becoming an ultrasound technician.

Instead of preparing for the start of her junior year at Hillsboro High School, she said she spent the week organizing her daughter's funeral.

"There is no relief. My baby is gone. What mother wants to bury her child?" she lamented.

School district will offer psychological support

The Hillsboro School District reported that it will make specialized grief counselors available to students and families following the death of the teenager.

In a statement, Superintendent Jon Isaacson expressed his condolences to the family and assured that the educational community will receive support during this process.