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Rifle Lost by Salem, N.H. Police Officer Returned Safely

SALEM, N.H. (CBS) -- An "embarrassed" New Hampshire police department said Wednesday that a semi-automatic rifle lost by an officer on Tuesday has been returned.

A rifle bag and all of its contents, including the rifle, were turned into the Salem Police Department by a Good Samaritan who saw on the news that an officer had driven off with the bag unsecured on the trunk of his cruiser.

"It is a tremendous relief, and we realize we still have a black eye. We own this. We made a mistake," said Salem Lt. Joel Dolan.

Police Rifle
A couple found a lost police rifle in a snow bank. (WBZ-TV)

A resident found the gun in a snow bank near his home and showed it to his neighbors. The neighbor thought it was a violin, Daniel LeBlanc, who was shown the found gun.

"We saw the barrel and said, 'Let's bring it to the police station. We'll do something good,'" Cristina Saporosi told WBZ-TV's Christina Hager.

The couple drove it to the police department and turned it in.

"I was a nervous wreck," said Saporosi.

Earlier on Wednesday, police asked the public for help to find the weapon that an officer mistakenly left on his cruiser.

Officials said that about 3:45 p.m., the officer put his black canvas bag carrying his patrol rifle on the trunk of his cruiser while getting ready for his shift.

"The officer did not secure his rifle in the trunk of the cruiser prior to driving out of the police station parking lot," police said. "The officer was dispatched to several calls after leaving the parking lot and believes the bag containing the rifle fell off of the trunk as he left the parking lot."

salem-rifle-bag
A canvas bag similar to the lost one containing a Salem police officer's rifle (Photo credit Salem police)

Police described the rifle as a Colt M4 Commando 5.56mm semi-automatic only patrol carbine with an 11.5-inch barrel.

The officer didn't realize his rifle was lost until his shift ended at 11:45 p.m. He immediately notified supervisors and that's when police say an extensive search began. He was "embarrassed" by the situation, police said.

Police acknowledged the public safety risk posed by the lost rifle, and say they will conduct an internal investigation to make sure it doesn't happen again.

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