Children find deputy’s loaded gun and badge in Tahoe Airbnb, California police say

A California family found a loaded handgun and a Santa Clara County sheriff’s deputy’s badge while staying in their Airbnb rental in South Lake Tahoe, police said.

Jon Segarra from Hayward said his four children found the gun after they arrived and were picking out their bunk beds, according Fox 2.

“All the time they got curious and started looking in the drawers,” Segarra told Fox 2. “It’s an Airbnb. “They do not know what is going to be in there. They called us and said they found a gun and a police badge. Our first impression was thinking it was fake.”

Segarra’s children didn’t touch the gun, and the South Lake Tahoe Police Department retrieved the badge and the weapon, according to Fox 2. The gun was a “Ruger 380 handgun with a fully loaded clip.”

The department is investigating the incident but doesn’t believe the gun and badge were stolen, according to NBC Bay Area. They were most likely left behind.

“The Sheriff’s Office was made aware of the incident Friday night,” the sheriff’s office told McClatchy News in a statement. “We are working with the South Lake Tahoe Police Department to determine all of the facts and have already launched an internal investigation. Most importantly, we are thankful no one was hurt as a result of this incident.”

A sheriff’s spokesperson told McClatchy News the gun wasn’t a sheriff’s office firearm but that it was instead a personal handgun.

This story was originally published January 13, 2020 at 1:30 PM with the headline "Children find deputy’s loaded gun and badge in Tahoe Airbnb, California police say."