Attempted suicide at West Edmonton Mall prevented watchful eye

Suicide attempt at West Edmonton Mall
by The Canadian Press - Story: 82654
Oct 31, 2012 / 5:56 pm
Canada
The owner of a firearms range at West Edmonton Mall is full of praise for two of her employees who may have prevented a customer from killing himself with a rented pistol.

Flora Kupsch said when a man pointed a Glock 9-mm gun at himself Tuesday night after firing more than 40 rounds at a target, her staff stepped in and there was a scuffle.

Police say the man suffered a gunshot wound to the neck and was in stable condition in hospital.

"I am very, very proud of them the way they reacted," Kupsch said Wednesday. "Everybody is shaken up about what happened. I was just freaking out about the whole thing."

The Wild West Shooting Centre has been operating for 13 years at the mall and bills itself as "Edmonton's Funnest Attraction." Customers rent pistols and ammunition and paper targets to shoot at.

Ads for the centre say that no firearms licence is required. Wild West says it prides itself on following strict safety protocols and employs friendly, experienced staff.

However, two men have died as a result of self-inflicted gunshot wounds in the past, one in 2007 and another in 2008.

Kupsch said a man in his 50s came into the centre Tuesday night saying he had never fired a gun before.

He then paid the fee to rent the Glock, the type of pistol used by many police services across Canada, and 50 rounds of ammunition, but then left the centre briefly to have a cup of coffee before taking the gun.
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