GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. -- The Mesa County Coroner's Office has confirmed the identity of the teen who was killed yesterday in a shooting in Clifton.

The victim was 16-year old Troy Martinez of Clifton. Friends tell us he was a sophomore at Central High School. The shooting death has been ruled a homicide and is under further investigation.

The original claim the shooting was an accident is being dismissed by investigators and gun experts alike. But the possibility if the original claims could happen is being debated.

Wednesday night a teen boy died on scene after a fatal gun shot wound. Witnesses said a hysterical friend called in saying it was all an accident.

"He just kept repeating that he was taking apart the bullet and it went off and it hit him in the chest," said witness Richard Chambers yesterday.

However, investigators are now putting that myth to rest. They say it's a homicide meaning someone had to pull the trigger. And the idea of a bullet going off in someone's hands is far-fetched.

"It's impossible for a bullet to just go off," says Heather Benjamin with the Mesa County Sheriff's Office.

"Ammunition is just as dangerous as a loaded fire arm," says local gun expert Tom Matthews, who doesn't entirely agree with the Sheriff's Department.

He says it's possible to turn a bullet by itself into a deadly weapon but it all matters on how you hold it. Matthews says he's seen people clamp bullets in a pair of pliers. If something were to hit the back the bullet hard enough he says it could discharge the bullet.

"Because you're holding the cartridge and the gas inside fires it out," says Matthews.

He says it also relies heavily on the type of bullet and without the ideal conditions it won't do much damage.

"I've mentioned to you earlier. That a fire where some of the cartridges were actually caught on fire and the bullets were separated from the cartridge less than a foot," says Matthews.

Again, at this point the Sheriff's Department believes a gun was involved in the homicide. They won't say if they have any suspects.

We'll continue to follow the investigation and bring you the latest.