Man arrested after alleged festive firing in Abdoun

AMMAN — Police arrested a man over the weekend who reportedly fired live ammunition during a graduation celebration in an Amman suburb.

The incident occurred late on Friday night in the Abdoun neighbourhood of west Amman, near the Egyptian embassy, Police Spokesperson Lt. Col. Amer Sartawi said.

“We received a complaint that someone was firing live ammunition in an area in Abdoun. When we checked the matter, we discovered that the source was a man who was celebrating his friend’s graduation from university,” Sartawi told The Jordan Times.

The police official added that a man has been arrested and a weapon seized.

“The weapon was sent to the criminal lab for a routine examination,” Sartawi added.

No one was injured in the incident, according to the police official.

In 2015, the Public Security Department announced strict measures against those who take part in festive firing, with the department pledging to arrest any person who owns a gun without a licence or fires weapons for any occasion. 

In 2015, 35 people were arrested and 33 weapons seized in cases of festive firing, according to official figures.

The judiciary has introduced stiffer penalties to curb festive shooting and, in cases of serious injury or death, started charging perpetrators with manslaughter and attempted murder.

Individuals convicted of causing death by festive firing face up to 20 years in prison, and in cases of multiple fatalities, the shooter could be sentenced to life in prison.