The facts occurred Friday morning: a five-year-old child accidentally shot his little sister, Mélissa, in the head. She has since been hospitalized at the Citadel, in critical condition, and the vital prognosis, following forty-eight hours, remains engaged. Several members of the family were arrested, interviewed and then released, for lack of elements that might suggest any homicidal intent. Additional investigations must be carried out at the beginning of the week, in particular the hearing – if possible – of the little boy.
The weapon in question is a CZ38 military pistol, caliber 9 mm, of Czech manufacture. It has the particularity of being “double action”: a pressure on the trigger is enough for cocking and percussion, and the shot is fired. It is undoubtedly the technical element which explains that the manipulation by a kid turned into a disaster.
“It is a weapon which was held completely legally by the person with whom the little girl was, a gentleman who is a sports shooter and who had acquired the weapon legally in 2021 in an armory in Liège, with all the necessary authorizations. The weapon was, it seems, usually stored in a locked box. We do not yet have quite all the explanations as to the fact that this five-year-old boy was able to seize this weapon.“, specified Damien Leboutte, the division prosecutor of Liège.
But beyond this particular case, the case illustrates the problem of the circulation of this kind of gear, with such mechanical specificities. During the Balkan Wars, for example, at the end of the last century, they reemerged from the past. And the entry of several countries in this area into the European Union has greatly facilitated sales and purchases. Moreover, Internet users can obtain them for modest sums, on various e-commerce sites, “delivery in four days, payable in four instalments”. Admittedly, this is a so-called regulated category, with the need to provide identity documents and authorizations by the purchaser. But the controls in this area undeniably have flaws.
