Overview
- A photo of the unattended rifle taken in the Lafitte Hotel restroom circulated on Reddit, accelerating public attention to the incident.
- Hotel staff locked the private restroom after a tour guide discovered the weapon, and the soldier returned within minutes to retrieve it, management said.
- The Louisiana National Guard says the weapon was returned and the case is being handled internally, with the soldier temporarily taken off patrol for retraining.
- New Orleans police responded after the discovery and directed inquiries to the Guard, which confirmed a review is in progress.
- Roughly 350 Guard members remain stationed in the city at Gov. Jeff Landry’s request, as local civic leaders call the lapse serious but likely accidental.