An IDF soldier was robbed of his weapon after he fell asleep during a bus ride in the Upper Galilee region of northern Israel on Friday, Israel Police announced.
After waking from his nap, he discovered his gun was missing and approached the bus driver. The driver confirmed that he saw a man carrying a weapon exit the bus, according to the report.
The suspected gun thief, a resident of Maghar, was later seen walking into the city with the weapon, N12 wrote.
Police recovered the weapon, which they found hidden during a search, and detained the man. Initial findings indicated that the suspect got off the bus at the Hananya Junction and fled on foot from the location where he was holding the soldier's weapon.
The incident happened the same morning that 68-year-old Shimshon Mordechai and 18-year-old Aviv Maor were murdered in a series of attacks by a terrorist.
Israeli soldier falls asleep in West Bank op.
The issue of soldiers falling asleep has led to security incidents over the past month. Two weeks ago, an IDF soldier was accidentally left behind during an operation last week near Kabatiya, a Palestinian town just south of Jenin in the northern West Bank, after he fell asleep.
The soldier was left alone for 40 minutes before eventually connecting with a different unit.
James Genn contributed to this report.