- A 12-year-old boy has been shot in the face while playing with a .22 rifle
- Child was playing with a gun with a friend on a rural property when he was shot
- New South Wales Police said the round ricocheted before hitting the boy in face
- He is in a stable condition with non-life threatening injuries
A 12-year-old boy who was accidentally shot in the face during a visit to a friend’s farm had been given the rifle to ‘put in the safe’ when it was fired, police said.
The young boy, who was in a shed at ‘Kikiamah’ a rural property in Thuddungra near Young in south-west NSW, was airlifted to hospital after the bullet tore through his cheek and went into his shoulder just before 7pm.
Police said the boy was playing with the .22 rifle with his friend when it went off – but they are still investigating who pulled the trigger and whether the youngsters were licensed to carry the gun.
The accident happened at ‘Kikiamah’ near Young in south-west NSW
‘We understand that there were two young boys at the house and we understand at this early stage that one young boy has been asked to return a firearm to the firearm safe,’ Detective inspector Scott Wilkinson from NSW Police said.
‘We then understand that an incident has occurred where the firearm has been discharged and as a result one of the boys has suffered an injury as a result of that.’
The ‘injury’ was to the left side of the face and shoulder, according to Young NSW Ambulance Inspector Stephen Pollard.
The Young Witness reported the bullet left ‘two entry and exit wounds’.
The boy was driven to the road from the sheep, grain and hay producing property where the accident happened to meet an ambulance which took him to Young Hospital where he was stabelised.
The boy was airlifted to the Children’s Hospital in Westmead (pictured) for specialist care
He was then airlifted to Westmead Hospital for specialist care.
He is in a stable condition with non-life threatening injuries.
A crime scene has been established at the home but police do not believe the shooting was suspicious.
The family living on the property refused to comment on the accident.
‘We know the family involved and we won’t be saying anything – this is an open police investigation,’ a family spokesperson said.
Anyone with information is urged to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.