Unusual findings in a case of suicide with a gas weapon

Case report on a suicide with a gas pistol loaded with 8 mm blank cartridges. A 58-year-old male shot himself in the right temple and then in the back of the neck. The contact shot wounds showed large wound cavities with interspersed powder particles. The soft tissues were injured solely by the pressure of the exploding powder. Death was due to an air/gas embolism in the right ventricle of the heart.