A man was still between life and death on Sunday after being hit by a bullet while driving between Rennes and Nantes on Saturday. The thesis of a hunting accident is always favored by the prosecution. 20 minutes make the point.
What happened ?
The accident occurred on Saturday between Laillé and Orgères (Ille-et-Vilaine) while the driver and a passenger were traveling on the four-lane between Rennes and Nantes. A 9.3 mm caliber bullet hit the vehicle, seriously injuring the driver in the neck. This 67-year-old man was rushed to Rennes University Hospital in critical condition. His state of health “still inspires the most serious concerns, the vital prognosis remaining seriously engaged,” said the magistrate on Sunday evening. The passenger of the vehicle suffers for its part from limited physical consequences, according to this source.
According to the daily West France, which revealed the story, the passenger, shocked but unharmed, managed to control the vehicle and park it on the side of the road before calling for help.
Where is the investigation?
A hunter, placed in police custody a few hours after the accident, should be presented to an examining magistrate on Monday morning unless there is a last minute twist in the investigation, said deputy prosecutor Matthieu Thomas in a press release at the end of Sunday. daytime.
The prosecution intends to seize this judge “of an introductory indictment […] the count of unintentional injuries during a hunting action by manifestly deliberate violation of an obligation of safety or prudence, ”says the deputy prosecutor. Investigators from the Redon research brigade carried out a reconstruction of the facts on Sunday which reinforced the hypothesis of a hunting accident, according to this source. An investigation for unintentional injuries has been opened.
What are the reactions?
The president of the federation of hunters of Ille-et-Vilaine, André Douard, cannot explain the tragedy. ” It’s tragic. My first thoughts are with the victim, he said. The shooter was stationed about 500 m from the four-lane, ”he added. ” But it’s not possible [d’atteindre la victime] since, when I look where I am, in front of me, I have an obstacle, I have a hedge which is 150/200 m, which should have already stopped the ball normally. And, beyond, there are still trees. And, there, the four-way overhangs the trees of 2.50 meters, ”he explained.
The man arrested “is a hunter around 70, someone in great shape. How could it be done? […] I don’t want to justify the hunter’s shooting, I’m trying to understand, ”added André Douard. Willy Schraen, president of the National Federation of Hunters, said Monday that “zero risk does not exist”, while presenting his “apologies”.
This new accident comes after the EELV presidential candidate Yannick Jadot said Friday he wanted to ban hunting during weekends and school holidays. He justified his proposal by evoking the many hunting accidents affecting individuals, taking the example the day before of a “walker in Haute-Savoie, who was shot next to a cemetery”.