Soldier held after gunshot incident

Soldier held after gunshot incident

KUPANG, East Nusa Tenggara: A soldier whose gun went off in a
hotel lobby here on Tuesday is being questioned by military
police.

First Sgt. Asep Suryana is in custody at the Kupang military
police detachment in Kupang, the capital of East Nusa Tenggara,
after he fired a single live round in the lobby of the Sasando
Hotel. No one was hurt in the incident.

Military police chief Maj. Helvis said on Thursday Asep, whose
FN 46 pistol had fired, had been questioned since Wednesday by
investigators.

In an investigation report, Asep said the incident was purely
accidental.

Helvis said the incident began when Asep, a soldier with the
Kupang military police detachment, entered the Sasando Hotel
lobby. As he entered, his pistol's magazine unhooked from its
casing and fell to the ground. When Asep tried to put the
magazine back, his finger accidentally pulled the pistol's
trigger. The sound of the gunshot caused consternation at the
hotel.

Asep told police he later realized that when he had put the
magazine into the casing, there was still a live round inside the
pistol. Military police were continuing to investigate, Helvis
said. -- JP