There’s a good reason doing research on the internet usually comes before you make a purchase, not after.
A Florida man was arrested Sunday after he allegedly fired a shotgun through the wall of his neighbour’s home, narrowly missing a mother and her daughter watching TV.
His reason? He said he had just purchased the gun, and was trying to figure out how it worked by looking on the internet when it accidentally discharged – and sent a blast through his wall.
Deputies arrested Collier County, Florida resident Todd Devozza later that night. Police say he told officers he had recently purchased the shotgun for home defence, but did not know how it worked.
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So he reportedly turned to the internet, evidently using live ammunition despite his ignorance of the gun’s functionality. He also told deputies he had been drinking that night.
“That’s ridiculous, if you wanna learn to use a gun then go to a gun range and to professionals,” Judith Woerler, who lives across the street from Devozza, told NBC-2 News. “I could imagine asking him what the heck are you thinking.”
It was a particularly terrifying moment for Lori Glenn, Devozza’s neighbour who was watching TV with her daughter when the wall exploded, showering debris and shotgun pellets about the living room.
“I don’t know how it missed her,” John Najarian, Glenn’s boyfriend, told NBC-2. “I knew it was a shotgun.”
Najarian said they previously had a good relationship with Devozza, but the recent shotgunning of his living room has put the relationship under a bit of strain. In fact Najarian says Devozza has not been over to apologize since the incident.
“I certainly would be pretty awkward, but I promise you I could overcome that and go make sure everybody was OK,” said Najarian.