Massachusetts man, 23, kills himself at Belmont firing range

By THOMAS P. CALDWELL, LACONIA DAILY SUN

BELMONT — Police have determined that a 23-year-old Massachusetts man intentionally shot himself in the head on Saturday at Belmont Firearms and Range.

Belmont Police Lt. Richard Mann said video surveillance and testimony from witnesses at the range left no doubt that the victim, whom police declined to identify, purposely fired the single round that took his life on July 29 at 12:45 p.m.

“There were seven people in the immediate area, including the victim,” said Mann.

The suicide weapon was a high-capacity handgun owned by the range, Mann said, but he declined to give the specific model of the gun.

Following an established protocol for handling firearms incidents, the staff of the facility immediately closed the premises, ushering out the other customers and closing the doors, while administering medical aid to the victim and calling 911 for assistance. The man was transported to Lakes Region General Hospital in Laconia where he was pronounced dead.

The victim’s mother was on a cruise and it took some time for authorities to reach her and inform her of what had happened, Mann said.

Belmont Firearms and Range “is the premiere firearms place,” Mann said, noting that the Belmont Police Department practices and holds firearms qualifications for officers there. “They are exceptionally safe, their record is stellar, and they’re very well-trained. But if somebody has the formulation to do it, they’re going to do it.”

He added that the investigation was in the final stages on Monday afternoon and had determined that there was no wrongdoing on anybody’s part, inside or outside the facility. “Nobody else was involved,” he said.

Police have found no motivation for the man’s decision to end his life, and Mann said they were in the process of wrapping things up with the investigation.

Mann said he could remember no other incident at the Belmont range, but Laconia Daily Sun archives show that a 72-year-old Moultonborough man had sustained a gunshot wound the leg there in July 2013.

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255.