Cop accidentally shoot 10-year-old schoolboy

A schoolboy was shot in the neck when a pistol went off while a police officer was removing its bullets in front of a house in Kampung Belanja Kiri, Parit yesterday.

Mohd Amar Mohd Azizi, 10, was about 40 metres away from the house belonging to the police officer's mother-in-law when the bullet penetrated his throat in the incident about 4.30pm.

The victim was sent to a clinic in Parit and later, to the Batu Gajah Hospital before he was transferred to the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital to undergo an operation to remove the slug.

The police officer, believed to be an assistant investigating officer with the Taiping police headquarters, has been detained to facilitate investigations.

Central Perak police deputy chief, DSP Leong Ah Kow said an X-Ray had shown that a slug from the police officer's P-99 pistol was lodged in the victim's throat.

He said the police officer's gun and a magazine with 14 rounds of ammunition were seized to shed light on the incident, adding that the case was investigated under Section 39 of the Firearms Act 1960.

"Initial investigations revealed that the suspect was emptying his firearm when it was discharged, resulting in the boy being shot in the neck," he said in a statement in Ipoh today.

- Bernama