A security officer is in a stable condition after being injured in an accidental firearm discharge at the Ministry of Works and Infrastructure building in Port of Spain on Wednesday evening.

Police said that around 6.35 pm, the officer was on duty at the security sentry post on the sixth floor of the ministry’s Richmond Street office when a colleague handed over a service-issued Glock 19 pistol with the slide locked to the rear and a loaded magazine, indicating that the firearm had been cleared.

According to police, the officer pointed the firearm downward and released the slide before hearing a loud bang. He immediately felt a burning sensation in his left thigh.

He was taken to the Port of Spain General Hospital for treatment.

Crime Scene Investigations Unit officers photographed the scene, while another officer later conducted a welfare check at the hospital and reported that he remains stable.

Investigations are continuing.