An uninvited guest pulled out a blank pistol at a private barbecue in Ebersdorf near Coburg in Upper Franconia. The man simply sat down at a beer table in a small group at the party and waved the weapon around without saying a word, a police spokesman said on Saturday. A shot went off. A 43-year-old woman suffered acoustic trauma as a result.
The police took the heavily intoxicated 39-year-old away. He spent the night sobering up at the Coburg police station.
The officers also found a whole box of other weapons in his apartment, including more blank-firing guns, airsoft guns and a crossbow. Whether the man is authorized to own the weapons is part of the investigation. According to the police, the 39-year-old and the organizers of the barbecue did not know each other.