Officials with the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department are notifying the public of a department-issued assault-style rifle and 150 rounds of ammunition missing from the trunk of a patrol vehicle, officials announced.
The incident, according to an LASD news release, unfolded Saturday evening between 10 p.m. and 11 p.m. when deputies were responding to a call for service.
“The [Colt M4] rifle had been stored in the trunk of their patrol vehicle and is believed to have fallen out during transit,” officials said.
Authorities added that the rifle was inside a black, hard-shell storage case along with five magazines, each containing 30 rounds of .223 caliber bullets.
It’s unclear exactly when the deputies learned the assault-style rifle and ammunition was missing, but authorities said personnel from the department’s South Los Angeles Station immediately began a search of the station’s parking lot and retraced the deputies’ four-mile route north on Normandie Avenue, west on Imperial Highway, north on Hawthorne Boulevard, and west on 104th Street to Inglewood Avenue.
LASD said that surveillance footage from the area traveled was being reviewed and that in the meantime, other local law enforcement agencies have been notified of the missing rifle and ammunition.
“The Sheriff’s Department has initiated an internal review of the incident, including an evaluation of whether policies and procedures were followed, to identify areas for improvement and prevent future incidents from occurring,” the release stated. “The Department is committed to transparency and accountability as we investigate this incident.”
KTLA has reached out to the department for comment and were told there were no updates and that officials would not be providing a photograph of the weapon at this time.
Anyone with information about the missing rifle and ammunition or who may have surveillance footage along the deputies’ route of travel is urged to contact LASD’s South L.A. Station at 323-251-7434.
Those wishing to remain anonymous can call the L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers Hotline at 800-222-8477 or leave tips online at www.lacrimestoppers.org.
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