Saturday, October 13, 2007

Mate's testicle shot off by accident, court told

A car dealer who found a handgun in a caryard he bought accidentally shot his friend in the testicle while playing with the firearm, a court was told yesterday.

Both men then lied about the shooting to police, telling them it occurred during a robbery.

Mark Anthony Cheers, 39, pleaded guilty in Southport District Court to assault occasioning bodily harm while armed, possessing an unlicensed weapon and carrying dangerous goods in a vehicle.

The court was told Cheers found the gun in a business he had bought and twirled it around his finger while showing it to his friend, Phillip Marino.

The gun discharged, shooting Marino in the scrotum and groin. He lost 15 per cent of his right testicle, the court was told.

Cheers threw the gun in a canal but later recanted the robbery story and admitted he had shot his friend. Judge Fleur Kingham sentenced Cheers to 200 hours' community service.

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