A firearm safety class turned deadly over the weekend when the owner of a gun shop in Amelia, Ohio, was fatally shot by a student, authorities say.

Students were performing weapon malfunction drills on Saturday when a gun discharged through a wall at Monroe Township's KayJay Gun Shop, shooting James Baker, 64, in the neck, the Clermont County Sheriff's Office said in a release.

"Efforts to resuscitate Baker were unsuccessful and Baker was pronounced [dead] at 3:12 p.m.," the sheriff's office stated.

About 10 people were taking the concealed carry weapons permit class when the shooting occurred, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported. It's not clear whether Baker or someone else was actually teaching the class. The student who discharged the firearm has not been identified.

Neighbors have reacted with shock and sadness to the news.

WCPO James Baker, 64, was fatally shot while sitting in a room adjacent to a gun safety class at his Ohio gun shop.

"He was a friend to everybody," Baker’s neighbor, Anita Fritz, told the Enquirer. "If it snowed, he'd get everybody's driveway."

Neighbors say Baker was also popular among local law enforcement officers, who would regularly come to his shop to get their weapons serviced.

"Ten sheriff cops came because they all loved him," one woman told WCPO-TV, describing the aftermath of Saturday's shooting. "He was just loved by everyone."

According to the gun shop’s website, it offers firearm safety, training and CCW classes.

In a statement, the sheriff's office said an investigation is underway and "the Sheriff’s Office will be reviewing the incident with the Prosecutor’s Office prior to the release of any further details of this incident." The office declined to provide additional information.

A request for comment from the gun shop was not immediately returned.