Russian Official Fatally Shoots Man, Mistaking Him For Animal During Hunting Trip

A man from Russia's southern Tuva region, identified by media as a local parliament member, accidentally killed a person while hunting over the weekend, authorities announced Monday.

The Tuva branch of Russia's Investigative Committee (IC) has opened a criminal case against a resident over the incident in the town of Khondey Sunday, the office said in a statement.

The local, who was only identified by the IC as a 44-year-old native of the Erzinsky District, allegedly saw another man through his rifle's thermal imager during a hunting trip that day.

He mistook the man for an animal and fired off a shot, inflicting a gunshot wound on the unnamed 38-year-old victim, who died on the spot from his injuries, the IC statement read.

The gunman called the police, according to the outlet Baza, and a case under Article 109 of the Russian Criminal Code, or causing death by negligence, was filed against him.

Russian broadcaster RTVI identified him as Echis-Baldir Nurzat, a deputy in Tuva's parliament and a member of Russia's ruling political party, United Russia.

The gun he used during the incident was a VPO-114 "Huntsman" .308-caliber carbine from Russian arms manufacturer Molot, according to the IC.

"Investigative actions" are currently being carried out in connection to Nurzat's case, which is "aimed at establishing all the actual circumstances of the incident," the agency said.

In a similar story, a Pennsylvania man who allegedly killed a fellow hunter by accident in Colorado last September was found guilty on charges of criminal negligent homicide and hunting in a careless manner.

A jury in Cortez, Colorado, unanimously gave its verdict on the case of Ronald Morosko on Jan. 24.

The muzzleloader hunter fatally shot bowhunter Gregory Gabrisch on Sept. 17, 2021, in the San Juan National Forest above the Kilpacker Trail north of Rico.

Morosko believed he was shooting at an elk at the time and claimed he did not intend to attack Gabrisch.

However, the prosecution argued during the trial that Morosko failed to identify his target before firing and did not follow hunter-safety rules.

Morosko is free on bond until a sentencing hearing scheduled for March 31.

He faces up to three years in prison, a 90-day probation and a $100,000 fine for criminally negligent homicide, a Class 5 felony.