“It happens” was Limestone County Sheriff Mike Blakely’s comment Tuesday about a public intoxication suspect who had also concealed a pistol in his derrière.

Limestone County Sheriff’s Office Spokesman Stephen Young said the incident began shortly after midnight Tuesday with a call about a prowler on Esten Lane. The caller had found Jesse O’Neal Roberts, 23, of Elkmont, around his garage and held him at gunpoint until deputies arrived.

Once on the scene, Deputy Chad Harbin noticed Roberts seemed to be impaired and placed him under arrest for public intoxication. Deputies also found a truck in a ditch near Esten Lane that contained Roberts’ identification.

After arriving at the jail, Young said, corrections officers observed Roberts appeared to be walking strangely. At one point while being searched, Roberts stumbled and a pistol fell from what Young described as his “body cavity.”

“I immediately considered that he defecated on himself before noticing a familiar shape in the form of a pistol in his boxers,” according to a report filed by the corrections officer.

The weapon, a .380-caliber Jimenez, was not loaded. Dispatchers checked the serial number and discovered the firearm was stolen in Florence.

In addition to the public intoxication charge, Roberts faces charges of first-degree promoting prison contraband, carrying a concealed weapon without a permit and fourth-degree receiving stolen property.

He remains in the Limestone County Jail with a $7,250 bond.