A gunshot that traveled through several walls of a house resulted in the death of a 72-year-old Aberdeen woman Monday.

Aberdeen police responded to a 911 call that shots had been fired at an Aberdeen residence around 9:29 p.m. Upon arrival, police found a man holding Barbara Shortt Doughten, who had been struck by a bullet. Doughten was declared dead at FirstHealth Moore Regional Hospital later that evening.

Douglas Doughten, the son of Barbara Shortt Doughten, was the man holding her when police arrived, said Jim Foster, a captain with the Aberdeen Police Department. He told police that he thought he heard someone breaking into the house he shared with his mother. He discharged his gun, a 9 mm, and the shot traveled through several walls of the house, hitting his mother under one of her arms. He was in his bedroom, while his mother had been in a bathroom on the other end of the house, Foster said.

Although it appeared to be an accidental shooting, Foster said, the case is still under investigation.