Italy’s Prime Minister’s right-wing party, Brothers Italia, found itself at the center of a scandal after a member of parliament’s gun went off at a New Year’s Eve party, injuring a guest.
Prosecutors have opened an investigation into the bizarre incident in the northern Piedmont town of Rosazza after Emanuele Pozzolo pulled out a .22 caliber mini-revolver to show off to party guests. Pozzolo has a license to own the firearm, but he was reportedly allowing it to be passed among guests when he “accidentally” fired, hitting the man in the leg. .
He admitted bringing a gun to the party but denied pulling the trigger.
“I can confirm that I fired the gun accidentally, but I was not the one who fired it,” he told local media. Opposition leaders collectively condemned the shooting and called on Prime Minister Georgia Meloni to intervene and take action.
Left-wing politician Nicola Fratoianni: “It looks like a third-rate movie, but it’s reality” I have written About the incident at X.
“These incompetent people are a danger not only to the security of our country but also to the safety of those around them,” Democrat Ellie Shrine said, according to the BBC. Francesca Delmastro, the mayor of Rosazza, told local media she was “speechless” over the incident.
“I could never have imagined that,” she said.
Undersecretary Andrea Delmastro, a colleague of Mr. Pozzolo’s who was at the party at the time, said Mr. Pozzolo had just stepped outside when shots rang out. “People who were there told me he pulled out a weapon the size of a cigarette lighter to show it off. Then the shot went off by mistake,” Del Mastro told Corriere della. I told Sarah.
The injured man, identified as the son-in-law of a member of Del Mastro’s security team, was taken to a hospital with minor injuries but was released late on New Year’s Day.
Meloni has not yet responded to calls for intervention. The Italian Brotherhood party dismissed the incident as having no “political relevance.”