BB Gun Confused For Handgun During Westlake Traffic Stop

WESTLAKE, OH — Police are issuing a warning to residents after officers briefly confused a BB gun for an actual handgun during a traffic stop on Saturday. A 25-year-old man was taken into custody after the incident.

"Although the weapon can only shoot BBs, like many other realistic looking guns out there, neither the police nor the public who might see someone carrying it can tell if it is an actual handgun or not," a Westlake police spokesperson warned in a statement. "Cases like this can and have ended up with tragic consequences."

On Saturday night, at 7:15 p.m., police stopped a car on Detroit Road, near Dover Center Road, for a license violation. The driver, a 25-year-old from Westlake, seemed nervous, police said. Officers then saw what appeared to be the end of a handgun near the driver's seat.

The driver was asked out of his car and police examined the gun. The weapon was actually a BB gun designed to resemble a Glock semi-automatic handgun.

The 25-year-old was taken into custody on suspicion of misdemeanor carrying various weapons. His car was towed.

Westlake police released an image of the BB gun, along with details on the case, as an educational warning, a spokesperson said.