NICE, May 8 ― The head of one of Monaco’s wealthiest families is fighting for her life after a bizarre shooting incident in France. 

Helene Pastor had just finished visiting her son in a hospital in Nice, France, when a gunman fired into the passenger side of the vehicle where the 77-year-old heiress was riding.

The shooter then leaned into the car and fired twice at her chauffeur.

The driver slumped forward and the car coasted until it hit a traffic barrier.

Witnesses said the weapon used was a pump action shotgun, which fires shells with metal pellets.

Helene Pastor and her driver are in critical condition. She has wounds to the jaw while both victims received several dozen shotgun wounds.

A source near the investigation said the chauffeur may have been the intended target, while noting that it would be unlikely for a professional assassin to use a pump-action shotgun. ― Reuters

The car where Monaco heiress Helene Pastor and her driver were shot is seen outside the Archet hospital in Nice May 6, 2014. ― Reuters pic