A 17-year-old boy died after he was accidentally shot in the head with an air rifle by his friend at a house party, an inquest has been told.

Connor Bell had been drinking at a friend’s house in Basingstoke, Hampshire, on 8 November last year when Jack Beechy fired the fatal shot by mistaking the trigger for the safety catch, the inquest heard.

The boys were shooting the weapon out of the conservatory into the garden at targets such as bottles.

Beechy, 18, accidentally pulled the trigger when he was trying to put the safety catch on the air rifle while it was pointed towards Bell’s head.

Connor, from Tadley, Hampshire, was taken to Southampton general hospital but he died two days later from a severe brain injury.

The inquest at Winchester coroner’s court was told that the crank air rifle was stored in the cupboard under the stairs in the home of Connor’s friend Joshua Brown, now 18.

Paying tribute to his son at the inquest, Robert Bell said: “He was cheeky and mischievous but so kind and caring. He never took himself too seriously and had a wicked sense of humour.

“He also enjoyed a variety of sports, especially football. He was often the driving force in his friends, going out to play football or just doing stuff together.

“He was doing a sports course at college, and he had done a work placement at our local leisure centre in Tadley, and the manager there said as soon as he has got his certificate come back to us.”

Brown, who was 17 at the time of the incident, gave evidence at the inquest, saying his father had shown him how to safely use the gun on two occasions.

Talking about what his father told him, he said: “Not to point it at people.”

When asked if he had thought about putting the gun away after shooting in the garden, before his friends came over, he said: “I wanted my friends to use it. I just thought it would be fun.”

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The inquest was told that Beechy was arrested by the police after the accidental shooting but no further action was taken.

Giving evidence on Wednesday, Beechy said he had been drinking cider and vodka at the party and he was “a little bit drunk”.

The Hampshire area coroner Jason Pegg ruled that Connor’s cause of death was a gunshot wound to the head and he died from cardiac arrest from a brain injury. He concluded that it was an accident.

Pegg said: “Connor was just 17 years of age at the time of his death. It is quite clear to me, having heard from [Connor’s family], that he was a son, grandson and a friend. He was a young man who had aspirations in the physical fitness field and had a life planned ahead of him. He was full of life and had a cheeky side and had much to live for.”

He added: “This demonstrates the real risk when you have a group of young people drinking alcohol. This is a deeply tragic case.”