After the death of a camerawoman while shooting a film with Hollywood star Alec Baldwin, the lawyers of the gun master in focus brought “sabotage” into play. Someone could have put a live ammunition bullet in a box of harmless dummy cartridges to sabotage the film, lawyer Jason Bowles said on the Today Show on Wednesday. There were dissatisfied employees on the set who complained about the working conditions, Bowles continued.
The 24-year-old armorer loaded the gun with bullets from a box of dummy cartridges. How the live ammunition got into the revolver must be investigated, said the lawyer. At times, the weapons and ammunition on the set were not locked up, but were accessible to everyone.
Real bullet in the Colt
In the incident during the shooting of the low-budget western “Rust” on a film ranch in Santa Fe (New Mexico) on October 21, chief cinematographer Halyna Hutchins († 42) was fatally injured and director Joel Souza (48) was killed hit the shoulder. Baldwin (63), who is the main actor and producer in the film, had fired the gun during the rehearsal for a scene. Investigations revealed that there was a real bullet in the Colt.
On the set, investigators came across three handguns and around 500 rounds of ammunition, including blank cartridges and so-called dummy cartridges that do not contain gunpowder. But there was probably live ammunition among them, the investigators said last week.
The gun master has denied allegations of negligence on the set. The 24-year-old said in a letter through her lawyers at the end of October that she had “no idea” where the live ammunition found came from. An assistant director, who was also in focus, admitted that he had not strictly followed the safety precautions and only incompletely checked the weapon. (SDA)