A teenager has admitted killing his friend by accidentally firing an air rifle at him during a drunken house party. Connor Bell had been drinking with friends at the home of Joshua Brown in the Basingstoke area of Hampshire on November 8, 2025, when Jack Beechy fired the fatal shot by mistaking the trigger for the safety catch.
Fatal injury and hospital death
The 17-year-old suffered an "unsurvivable" brain injury after the pellet entered his head through his right eye socket causing him to suffer a cardiac arrest. He was taken to Southampton General Hospital where he died two days later.
An inquest held at Winchester Coroner's Court on Wednesday (October 14) was told that Mr Brown, who is now aged 18, had agreed with his parents that he was going to have a couple of friends round and that the air rifle, which they had owned for three weeks, would be left locked away in a cupboard.
Events of the party
The teenager said that on the day, more friends than he had told his parents about attended their home and they drank vodka, cider and beers instead of the box of 12 Peroni beers that his father had bought for them. Mr Brown said that he took out the .177 calibre air rifle and it was used to fire from the conservatory at targets in the garden such as bottles. He said that later in the evening he was in the lounge when Mr Beechy ran in from the kitchen and said: "I shot Connor."
Mr Beechy, now aged 18, told the inquest that he had drunk beer, cider and vodka during the evening and was a "little bit drunk". He said that Mr Brown had asked him to put the rifle back in its case so he decided to fire off the remaining pellets in the magazine from the conservatory because he "thought it would be safer" and added: "I thought I had completely unloaded it."
Mr Beechy said it was as he walked into the kitchen that he accidentally fired the rifle by mistaking the trigger for the safety catch while Connor was standing nearby. He said: "I tried to put the safety on but it was the wrong trigger. The safety is directly in front of the trigger."
Coroner's conclusion and family tribute
The inquest heard that after the emergency services arrived, Mr Beechy told police: "I shot my friend with an air rifle, it was an accident." A post mortem carried out by pathologist Dr Megan Jenkins found the cause of death to be a hypoxic brain injury caused by cardiac arrest resulting from a gunshot wound to the head.
Coroner Jason Pegg recorded a conclusion of accidental death with a lack of weapons-handling skills contributing to the death. He said that Mr Brown's father, Martin Brown, had thought his son was only planning a small gathering and had told him not to take the air rifle out of the cupboard. Mr Pegg said: "The reality was a little bit different, Joshua Brown, like many teenagers, decided to make it into more of a house party, his friends ended up bringing copious amounts of alcohol and within a short time of that party starting, Joshua and his friends were intoxicated with alcohol."
The coroner continued: "It's clear to me that he (Joshua) was shown how to use the rifle by his father. I am satisfied that Joshua told his friends how to use the weapon, how to load it, how to reload it and how to fire it and I am satisfied he told them how to use the safety catch." Mr Pegg said that there had been a "real risk and a degree of inevitably" of an accident happening among a group of young people drinking. He added Connor's death was "devastating" and said: "This is a deeply tragic case."
Connor's father, Robert Bell, said his son was "dearly loved" and said: "He was cheeky and had a caring and soft side, never took himself too seriously and had a wicked sense of humour." He said that his son enjoyed football and was a keen gym-goer and was training to become a personal trainer.
In a statement issued by Hampshire Police, the family of Connor Bell said: "Connor was a much-loved boy, who was very sporty and had a large circle of friends. This was a tragic accident which led to the loss of Connor. His friends conducted CPR at the scene, which allowed our son to be an organ donor and save lives. He has since been awarded an Order of St John in recognition of his donation."
"This incident was a tragedy for all the families involved and we are all supporting each other at this incredibly difficult time," they added. "We would like to remind the public about the potential dangers of air rifles and the care needed to ensure they are safely stored. They should only be used by people with the necessary skills and weapon-handling training."
