Sheriff’s deputies reported that multiple cars were burglarized in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana. The awkward part is that one of those vehicles was the personal car of their boss—Sheriff Joe Lopinto. It was unlocked. And he’d forgotten his personal firearm inside.

To his credit, Sheriff Lopinto took immediate responsibility. He posted to social media to explain to his constituents what had happened and how. Sheriff Lopinto even made some fun of himself: “Do as I say, not as I do…Unfortunately, the perfect storm hit for one criminal last night.” He also pointed out that the vehicle was not his patrol car, and the gun in question was not his service firearm, which taxpayers had bought him.

Sheriff Joe Lopinto said “no excuses”

“No excuses, I forgot. When I awoke this morning, my firearm was not where it is normally in my house safe. I realized that I must have left it in my vehicle….I checked my cameras and observed an individual helping himself to my property.”

So how did this happen to the police officer? He said he simply forgot about the firearm during a busy day. He described the perfect storm as “conflicting commitments where I had to change into shorts and do manual labor. My firearm was in my vehicle when I arrived home and I failed to remember to bring it back in my house.” It seems Sheriff Lopinto was working on his “honey-do” list overtime.

He used it as a teachable moment, adding, “As Sheriff, I often lecture about the dangers of leaving your vehicles unlocked and certainly leaving firearms in your vehicle.” But at the same time, Sheriff Lopinto learned a lesson. He admitted he now gets “that life, work, kids, schedule, etc. gets in the way of common sense. It happens quickly and can happen to anyone.”

Sheriff Lopinto had a final plea to his constituents. “If you happen to see anyone with a .380 for sale, let me know.” I feel sorry for any poor schmuck who attempts to unknowingly pawn the sheriff’s gun. You can see the security camera footage embedded below: