Moment crossbow thug shoots his victim in the head from point-blank range is revealed as he begins 18-year jail sentence

• Taxi driver Maricel Melinte, 47, was convicted of attempted murder in December
• The victim miraculously survived the attack despite the bolt lodging in his brain

A video of a thug attempting to murder another man by firing a crossbow bolt at at his head from point-blank range has been released by police.

The CCTV footage shows taxi driver Maricel Melinte walking into a back garden before taking aim at the unsuspecting man, who was known to him.

In a series of ‘incomprehensible actions’, the 47-year-old continued to attack his victim – even grabbing a nearby hammer to try to finish the job.

With the bolt lodged so far into his skull it reached his brain, the man, in his 30s, fought off his assailant and escaped from Melinte’s house in Southampton, before collapsing on a nearby road.

Yesterday, at Winchester Crown Court, Hants, Melinte was jailed for 18 years after being found guilty of attempted murder for the attack on September 26 2021.

Maricel Melinte, 47, has been jailed for shooting another man in the head with a crossbow, who survived the attack

The bolt went so far into the victim’s skull it hit his brain, but he was able to live after emergency surgery

Melinte, 47, of Fuschia Gardens, Southampton, was found guilty at Winchester Crown Court of attempted murder in December and sentenced to 18 years in jail today

After being taken to hospital, CT scans showed the crossbow bolt had gone into his brain, so he was put in an induced coma by doctors.

Miraculously, a lengthy operation to remove the bolt at Southampton General Hospital was a success and he is now on the mend.

The crossbow that was used in the attack

Despite the weapon being fired a point blank range, the victim has only been left with difficulties controlling his left eye and right elbow.

After regaining consciousness the victim revealed he had unwittingly filmed the incident on his camera, which had been placed on top of Melinte’s shed to record a time-lapse video. 

After the case, DI Howard Broadribb, of Hampshire police, said: ‘The fact this man survived such an ordeal is quite simply a miracle; the bolt was millimetres away from killing him.

‘I can only be thankful that it stopped where it did so he was able to give us his account of what happened that afternoon.

‘Although thankfully he is still with us, his life has been changed forever in the space of a few seconds due to Melinte’s incomprehensible actions.

‘I would like to commend his bravery throughout the court process.

‘We may never know why Melinte decided to commit this awful act, but thanks to the hard work of the investigators and the footage obtained from the camera, he will be spending a long time behind bars for this terrifying attack.

‘We take all instances of serious violence incredibly seriously and in this case, we used all the resources at our disposal to make sure the victim got the justice he deserved.’

Source: Read Full Article