Over a year after being hit in the head by a pellet fired by persons unknown, Alan Švets is still under rehabilitation, and the case remains unsolved.

The pellet, which hit him while he was enjoying a summer birthday party by the lakeside, lodged deep into his brain, leaving him in a coma for one month. However, miraculously he as since regained his vision, his ability to walk, and to speak.

Alan was born in Estonia and lived in Ida-Viru County until he was 10, when his mother, Oksana, moved him and his family to the U.K., for work purposes.

Alan shuttled between the two countries, finishing high school in Estonia then working in construction in England.

In the fall 2022, he returned to Estonia to start his own construction business.

Then on July 22 last year, he attended a birthday party with his girlfriend, at a campsite on the north shore of Peipsi järv.

The group of eight arrived around 8 p.m. and lit a bonfire. That was about the last of the party Alan can recall.

"I don't remember the bonfire itself, but there's a video of it at least," he said.

As to what happened next: "A sharp sound rang in my ears, and at first I thought a branch had fallen on my head," Alan recounted.

Prosecutor Liina Pikma told "Pealtnägija": "It sounded like the sort of noise you hear at sports events, easy to miss with all the music and partying."

"I didn't feel any pain, but just collapsed, a bit like being knocked out. I could just hear my friends talking, and trying to help," Alan continued.

Back in the U.K., Oksana got a phone call from Alan's sister. It was about 4 a.m. local time. "Mom, Alan is in intensive care, with a bullet in his head," she was told.

Alan was placed in a medically induced coma before being moved to Tartu University Hospital. His family flew back to Estonian to be with him.

"You just pray constantly, hoping he survives. For two weeks, things were unpredictable. He did regain consciousness, but couldn't speak but communicated may making signs, and through a smart device," Oksana went on.

"When I woke up, half my body wasn't functioning, and I had trouble breathing," said Alan.

In the end, the round was left where it was, as removing it would have been to hazardous.

Dr. Kadri Rõivassepp said: "Gunshot wounds to the brain have a 90 percent mortality rate ahead of reaching the hospital. He survived, but removing the bullet proved too risky."

While the doctors' were successful, the investigation so far has not been, and a year after the crime, no one has been held accountable.

Alan said he suspects it might have been a case of mistaken identity. A previous incident had, he thinks, led to someone going out for revenge, and who mistook him for the targeted individual, since he was wearing a similar, white T-shirt that night.

Alan said he had no known enemies, while a motivation of jealousy has been eliminated. He added that while he was hit by chance, the shot itself was intentional.

Investigators found no evidence the suspect returned to the scene, while ballistic tests cannot performed, due to the round remaining where it is.

Multiple air rifle pellets were found at the scene, however, suggesting more than one shot was fired.

After months of recovery, he is still not fully back to his original self.

"Of course I want the individual to be found. Preferably that they come forward and confess. That is way more commendable than hiding. To admit their guilt. Because they got lucky, that I survived."

Alan remains with disabilities, but is pursuing rehabilitation. and learning computer programming, with a focus on construction project design.

Oksana said: "I think that person knows what they have done. I don't know how they live with it, but perhaps they would like to to assuage their conscience and live with more peace of mind."

"I hope they can one day find peace by owning up to what they did," she added.

The original "Pealtnägija" segment is here.

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