SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. (AP) – A Santa Clara County sheriff’s deputy is on paid leave after apparently leaving his badge and a loaded gun that were found by a child at a South Lake Tahoe rental home.
Josh Segarra, 9, found the gun in a bedroom drawer 10 minutes after arriving at an Airbnb rental near the Heavenly ski resort over the weekend, the boy’s father, Jon Segarra of Hayward, told KTVU-TV.
At first, the family thought the items were fake. They didn’t touch the gun – a Ruger .380 handgun – but contacted local police.
“Imagine if they were playing with it,” said Segarra, a father of four. “I’m very angry about it. My kids found a loaded weapon in their room.”
The gun is the personal weapon of a deputy who apparently left the items behind while staying at the property, according to the Sheriff’s Office. The deputy is on paid administrative leave while the department investigates.
“We are thankful no one was hurt as a result of the incident,” the Sheriff’s Office said in a statement, according to KTVU-TV.
Airbnb said it also is investigating.
Copyright 2020 The Associated Press.