Man, 72, shot dead while hunting boar in France

Police have taken a hunter into custody after a 72-year-old man was shot and killed by a fellow hunter on a wild boar hunt.

The emergency services attempted to save the man’s life but pronounced him dead soon after reaching the scene near Gondreville, a commune to the west of Nancy in Meurthe-et-Moselle.

“The shooter, aged 57 and the victim, aged 72, were both participants in the hunt,” the procurer said in a statement.

“The suspect has been taken into custody as part of a manslaughter investigation that has been opened with the Toul investigation brigade.”

The hunt was organised by a local association, the Association communale de chasse agréée, ACCA de Gondreville.

Are hunting deaths on the rise in France?

The 2023-2024 season has resulted in several deaths and accidents, including hunters shot dead, or charged by wounded boars and a car being hit by stray bullets.

However, so far the level of accidents and deaths is comparable to last year, which was considered a relatively ‘safe’ year.

In the September 2022 - February 2023 hunting season, there were 78 accidents and six deaths, all of whom were hunters, according to a report by the l'Office français de la biodiversité (OFB).

The OFB says this marks a “historically low” level of hunting deaths. For comparison:

• In 2021-2022, there were 90 accidents and eight deaths.
• In 2020-2021, there were 80 accidents and seven deaths.

One theory as to why it may seem like hunting deaths are on the rise is that due to their increasing scarcity they attract more reporting when they do happen.

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