A resident of the Mstsislau District converted an underwater hunting pistol into a firearm, the State Forensic Examination Committee reported. Several instances of illegal handling of weapons by the suspect were established.
“A 51-year-old enterprise worker purchased a decommissioned blank-firing pistol and blank cartridges. Using improvised means, he modified them to make them live rounds and sold them to an acquaintance, from whom police later seized both the weapon and the ammunition,” the statement said.
A ballistic expert concluded that the weapon had been homemade from a decommissioned blank-firing pistol model R-411 of 10TK caliber. The pistol was found to be capable of firing.
Later, the suspect purchased an underwater hunting pistol, also modified it into a firearm, and sold it to another individual. However, the buyer ultimately handed the weapon over to the police.
“As established by the expert, the object was manufactured in a homemade manner from an underwater hunting pistol (produced during the Soviet period) through structural modifications. It is capable of firing individual shots with rimfire cartridges and qualifies as a hand-held short-barreled smoothbore firearm,” the committee said.
The Mstsislau District Court found the man guilty and sentenced him to three years of restricted freedom without placement in an open-type correctional facility, along with a fine of 35 base units. The verdict has entered into legal force.
