A boy accidentally killed his 67-year-old grandmother in southern Italy with his father's licenced hunting rifle, reports said on Wednesday.
The tragedy unfolded on Tuesday evening at the family home in Teana in the Basilicata region as the boy was holding the rifle after his father returned home from a hunting trip.
The boy is 13 years old, local daily La Gazzetta del Mezzogiorno reported on its website.
Police forensic and ballistic experts sealed of the scene of the accident in which the boy's grandmother died instantly.
Police are probing the incident and an autopsy is due to be carried on the woman's corpse at a hospital in the nearby city of Lagonegro, according to La Gazzetta del Mezzogiorno.
