A MAN trying to kill pigeons may have been responsible for accidentally smashing the windscreen of a police car in north Belfast with a metal-tipped bolt fired from a crossbow, it has emerged.
The police car, which was parked in the rear yard of Tennent Street PSNI station, had its back windscreen shattered sometime between 5pm and 7pm on Wednesday.
Police believe the bolt was fired from the Cambrai Street area and travelled up to 50 metres before hitting the car.
After a police appeal for information yesterday, a man came forward and officers have said they are not treating the incident as malicious.
The Irish News understands that the man told police he was trying to shoot pigeons when the bolt accidentally struck the vehicle.
Jolene Bunting, an independent councillor for the area, said the incident was "a disgrace".
She said: "People shouldn't be playing with crossbows, they are highly dangerous."
PSNI Sergeant Greg Dawson said: "We believe that the crossbow may have been fired from the area around Cambrai Street, near to a housing association building, meaning that the bolt travelled a distance of between 40 and 50 metres.
"This was a reckless act using a weapon that that could have injured either a police officer or a member of the public."
He added: "We do not believe that this was a malicious incident but we would remind owners of crossbows that these can be dangerous weapons and they should be aware of the possible criminal implications of their use."
