A GUNMAN who blinded his best friend after shooting him in the face with a semi-automatic weapon has been jailed.

Carl Cairns blasted colleague Vincent Prewett with a Benelli firearm while the mechanic was working at Hicks Logistics in Caldicot.

The victim said he was lucky to be alive but has lost his sight in his right eye following his horrific ordeal.

Cairns did not know the gun was loaded when he pulled the trigger after pointing it towards his friend, who was described as a “family man”.

South Wales Argus:

The shotgun Carl Cairns used. Picture: CPS Wales

He pleaded guilty on the basis that police had checked the gun and he believed it had been returned to him by the force safe and unloaded.

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Prosecutor Matthew Roberts told Cardiff Crown Court how the shotgun had been seized from another man in May 2019 following a “domestic incident”.

It might have been released back into the care of firearms enthusiast Cairns following police checks with an “undetected cartridge left in the magazine”.

He wanted to sell the gun and took it into work on August 10, 2019, to show another colleague who was interested in buying it.

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Mr Roberts said: “The defendant shouted, ‘Vincey!’ The gun was then fired towards him.

“It was a reckless action and it was recklessly pointed – it was a breach of the most basic safety rules.

“Mr Prewett was 20 to 30 feet away.

“Carl Cairns failed to ensure the safety catch was on.

“This was unforgivable and it should never have happened.

“The defendant said in interview he had intended to sell the gun.

“He said he did not intend to cause injury to his friend.”

In a victim personal statement read to the court by Mr Roberts, Mr Prewett said: “I lost my right eye. I had 21 pieces of lead shot embedded in my eye and head.

“I am lucky to be alive and to be able to see my children grow up.

“But my world has been turned upside down. This has had a catastrophic effect on my life.”

He has had to give up his HGV licence and now has to perform administrative tasks at work.

Cairns, 52, of Fisherman’s Walk, Bulwark, Chepstow, pleaded guilty to causing grievous bodily harm.

He also admitted failing to comply with a condition subject to which a firearm certificate was held.

Owen Williams, mitigating, said: “There was no intention to harm at all and he has hurt someone he regarded as his best friend.

“He wishes he could turn back time and wishes he had not caused this devastating injury.

“The defendant did not load the gun.”

Judge David Wynn Morgan told Cairns: “You have been in lawful possession of firearms for many years and are experienced in their use.

“You failed to adhere to the basic rules of safety.

“You had no business to take this weapon to a place of work.

“What you did was criminal and catastrophic and deserving of an immediate custodial sentence.”

The defendant was jailed for two years and ordered to pay a £149 victim surcharge following his release from prison.