- Khyler Edman, 15, died last week protecting his five-year-old sister from an intruder at their home in Port Charlotte, Florida. Edman's sister was unharmed in the incident.
- The suspected intruder, Ryan Cole, 27, was later found roaming the streets with several stab wounds.
- Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.
A 15-year-old Florida boy is being heralded as a hero after he died protecting his five-year-old sister from an intruder last week.
Neighbors in a Port Charlotte, Florida, neighborhood called 911 around 4 p.m. on September 26, when they noticed 27-year-old Ryan Cole wandering the streets with several stab wounds, WWSB reported.
When police arrived on the scene, Cole ran and broke into a home where a homeowner called cops. Cole was taken into custody after a short chase.
After Cole was arrested, police started canvassing the neighborhood and noticed the door to another nearby residence open, WFTS reported.
When they went inside, they found 15-year-old Khyler Edman dead and his five-year-old sister alive.
It's believed that Cole broke into that home before he was captured, and that a fight ensued between himself and the teen. Details haven't been released on how exactly the teen was killed.
Family spokeswoman Crystal Stone told Wink News that she always knew there was something special about Khyler.
"There is no hero that can amount to Khyler," she said. "He loved his family. He was his sister's keeper."
Cole was initially arrested on charges of burglary of an occupied dwelling and petty theft. But officials told WWSB that they expect further charges in the days to come.
Read more: An Ohio teen lifted up a 3,000-pound car to save his neighbor trapped underneath
Cole was well-known to police and has been arrested several times in the past year, on charges including trespassing and possession of a controlled substance.
A GoFundMe page set up to raise money for Khyler's funeral had raised more than $46,000 by Tuesday afternoon.
- Read more:
- A heroic 11-year-old girl saved her baby sister's life when she realized her sister wasn't breathing
- Actor Danny Trejo helps save baby trapped in an overturned car in Los Angeles
- Twitter lovingly nicknamed two men 'Hawaiian shirt guy' and '2x4 guy' after they heroically tackled a suspected arsonist who set 13 cars on fire
- A man rushed to help victims of the New Zealand mosque shooting while shots were still being fired
Join the conversation about this story »
NOW WATCH: Super-Earths are real and they could be an even better place to live than Earth