MOSCOW, July 16 (RIA Novosti) – A man in eastern Ukraine shot a passerby in the heart because he was offended by a cigarette butt flung in his direction, local media reported Tuesday.
The shooter, a 34-year-old resident of the Ukrainian city of Yenakiyevo, was “very drunk” when he fired the bull’s-eye shot, apparently with a flare gun, police told Vesti.ua.
When authorities arrived at the scene, just outside a cafe, the shooter was still holding the gun and “at first completely didn’t understand what was happening, but when he sobered up, he was in shock,” a police spokesman was quoted as saying.
The 37-year-old victim was alive when paramedics showed up, but then succumbed to his injuries, local news site 30.dn.ua reported. The gunman faces up to 15 years in prison for murder.
It was not immediately clear whether the victim was the one who actually threw the cigarette. 30.dn.ua quoted the city’s acting police chief as saying the conflict was caused by a “boy,” though he did not mention the age.
