Gun mishap kills teen in France

Nancy

A 14-year-old French boy accidentally shot his twin brother dead during a family meal Sunday while playing with guns that he did not know were loaded, police said.

"One of the family members had got out several guns, without knowing or giving a warning that some of them were loaded," a local police commander in charge of the inquiry told AFP.

A source close to the inquiry in the town of Hennezel, northeastern France, said the boys' uncle had been charged with manslaughter on Monday. The man, who is in his fifties, was released on conditional bail.

The boy had picked up an automatic pistol on Sunday evening and accidentally fired it, shooting his brother in the chest.

Police said firefighters had tried to tend to the injured boy but were unable to save him.