After shooting accident

Chairman does not want to leave shooters out in the cold

The shot that hit the victim was fired in front of the building

(Bild: Matthias Lauber/laumat.at)

63-year-old man from Wels is being investigated for grossly negligent grievous bodily harm after a shooting accident. The victim, a 22-year-old boy, is awake again. Chairman Helmut Zöbl told the "Krone" what consequences await the marksman from the club and how the victim's father feels about him.

The 22-year-old has been responsive again since Saturday afternoon. "He will remain in intensive care for another day or two and then move to the normal ward," said Helmut Zöbl, chairman of the Offenhausen shooting club, relieved at the relatively mild outcome. As reported, a 63-year-old man had unintentionally shot the young man from Wels in front of the clubhouse. The bullet pierced his left lung.

"Is still welcome"
The shooter, who is a friend of the victim's father, is obviously deeply reproached. "He offered me his resignation straight away, but I told him to wait and see," says Zöbl. The man wasn't allowed to shoot anyway, the police issued a temporary weapons ban and confiscated all his guns: "But he can come over and have a beer - it's important not to leave him out in the rain now."

He is now being investigated for grossly negligent grievous bodily harm. If convicted, he could face up to two years in prison.

Christoph Weber, Pressesprecher Staatsanwaltschaft Wels

Up to two years in prison
On Saturday, the chairman put up laminated red notices at the shooting range, reminding shooters to empty the barrels of their weapons. "We are investigating grossly negligent grievous bodily harm. The shooter faces up to two years in prison," explains public prosecutor Christoph Weber. The investigation is likely to take weeks.

What does the father say?
Helmut Zöbl doesn't know what the situation is now between the gunman and the victim's father, because: "The boy's condition took priority. But they drove home together on the evening of the accident."