TOMS RIVER — A Stafford Township man has been charged after the firearm he was cleaning went off and accidentally shot his 13-year-old daughter, the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office announced Saturday.

Stafford Township police were called to Southern Ocean Medical Center around 2 p.m. Friday regarding a 13-year-old girl with a gunshot wound to the right side of her torso.

An investigation revealed that Edgar Baerga, 47, of Manahawkin, was cleaning his firearm at his residence when it discharged, police said. A round struck his daughter. Baerga then drove her to the hospital before contacting police. The girl was transported to Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune where she is listed in stable condition.

Baerga was charged with aggravated assault and endangering the welfare

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