Father kills son by accident after robbers reported in the area

(CNN) -- A Connecticut grade-school teacher accidentally shot his 15-year-old son during what he apparently thought was the attempted robbery of a neighbor's house, police said Friday.

"Something like this is a tragedy, a loss of human life," State Police Lt. Paul Vance said.

The incident occurred in New Fairfield about 1 a.m. Thursday when a woman called her neighbor, Jeffrey Giuliano, and said she thought there was a robber in front of her house.

Police say the woman, whom they declined to identify, said the robber was dressed in black, wearing a ski mask and holding a shiny object.

Giuliano confronted the person, whom he apparently didn't realize was his adopted son, Tyler, and shot the boy when he "came toward him in a threatening manner."

Tyler Giuliano was pronounced dead at the scene. His father has not been charged with a crime.

"We're all waiting for that million-dollar answer: What was going through (Tyler's) mind that night?" said New Fairfield resident and local politician John Hodge. "Something like this really hit us hard. We do want to get the real answers here."

Hodge added that New Fairfield is "close-knit community" where "certainly nothing of this nature" has occurred in recent memory.

Tyler Giuliano was a sophomore at New Fairfield High School.

Police say they are continuing to investigate the incident.