A volunteer at a Nanaimo needle exchange found a loaded sawed-off shotgun in a garbage can and fired it, thinking it was a toy gun.
Bystanders called 911 at 10 a.m. Tuesday after they heard a shotgun blast near Harris House Health Clinic on Franklin Street.
The 31-year-old volunteer was cleaning up garbage when he found the shotgun in a garbage can, said Nanaimo RCMP spokesman Const. Gary O鈥橞rien. Fellow volunteers heard him make an off-the-cuff comment that he didn鈥檛 think the shotgun was real.
鈥淗e picks it up, racks it and pulls the trigger,鈥� O鈥橞rien said. 鈥淗e pointed it at the ground, thank goodness.鈥�
The blast bounced off the pavement, but did not injure anyone.
Mounties in high alert responded to the area and told the man to put down the gun. He told police it was an accident.
Police seized the gun, which had no other rounds inside. The man will not face charges.
The RCMP does not know who put the shotgun in the garbage can or how long it had been there, but believe it was at least 24 hours. 鈥淭his could have had tragic consequences if a child happened to come across it,鈥� O鈥橞rien said.
Forensic investigators will check the firearm鈥檚 serial number to see if it is recorded in any police databases and to determine whether it has been used in any reported crimes, he said.
鈥淭he message this screams is: 鈥榊ou treat every firearm as real and loaded until such time you know otherwise.鈥� 鈥�
