AUGUSTA (AP) — A Maine sheriff says his body armor protected him when he was stuck in the back by a bullet from a fellow officer’s gun at a firing range.

Kennebec County Sheriff Randall Liberty said he’s nursing a welt and bruises after being shot Thursday at a shooting range where deputies were conducting firearm qualifications.

Liberty, who is a retired Army master sergeant, served in Iraq and told the Kennebec Journal that “I made it out of Fallujah and I get shot in Gardiner.”

The officer who shot Liberty remained on duty.

The sheriff said there were five certified instructors at the range when the accident occurred. He said an internal investigation should be completed next week.