Boy, 8, dies after being shot in head on farm

A BOY aged eight has died after being shot in the head as he played on farmland.

- Paul Jeeves

The child had been critically injured and was airlifted to hospital on Saturday but was pronounced dead early yesterday.

Police later arrested a man in his 60s on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter.

Killed

He was questioned by detectives who seized a firearm at the property in Warcop, Cumbria.

Fields near to the scene are grazed by sheep and are not used for game bird shoots although there is a Ministry of Defence firing range close to where the boy was shot.

A spokesman said the MoD was not involved in the incident.

The shocked farmer who owns the land said he saw the shooting.