Montville Officer's Gun Fires Inside Police Station: Reports

MONTVILLE, CT — A police officer's gun went off in the police headquarters lobby Monday, according to The Day. The incident, which is being described as a "spontaneous discharge,"
occurred at 9:01 a.m. while police were arresting Zachary Barbarossa, 22, of Norwich.

Barbarossa had attempted to take drugs out of a drop box at the police station. He resisted being taken into custody. A video of the incident shows a police officer went to pick up his legs when the gun fired for no apparent reason, The Day reported.

No one was injured.

Barbarossa was charged with first-degree possession of a controlled substance, third-degree criminal mischief, and resisting arrest. He was released on a $2,000 bond and has an Aug. 10 court date.

Chief Wilfred Blanchette III told WFSB 3-TV that initially police that there had to be something that caused the handgun, a Sig Sauer, to fire. But he said there was nothing: "No manipulation of the firearm, not anything that would have caused it to discharge.”

Shortly after the incident, police ordered new weapons, Glocks, for the entire force. Blanchette said every sidearm issued to officers is being replaced, WFSB 3-TV reported.

The replacement of 35 guns costs about $20,000.

Similar incidents have been reported elsewhere in the country. In Milwaukee, police reported "multiple unexplained accidental discharges" of Sig Sauer guns, Fox 6 Milwaukee reported.

In Maine, the Somerset County Sheriff's Office sued Sig Sauer, a New Hampshire-based company, after a gun unintentionally discharged and injured an officer last year, according to NBC Maine.