Updated 3:30 p.m. Revised with new information from the Dallas County Sheriff's Department.

Dallas County Sheriff Department officials found the missing gun that had been issued to former sheriff Lupe Valdez — in the department's property room.

The 9 mm pistol was found in the property room after interim Sheriff Marian Brown ordered an audit, according to a news release from the department Tuesday. Brown ordered the audit after The Dallas Morning News revealed that the gun, which was issued to Valdez after her original service weapon malfunctioned, was not accounted for after Valdez resigned as sheriff in December to run for Texas governor.

It was the second audit conducted by the Sheriff's Department to find the service weapon. The missing gun put Valdez in a negative light as the race for the governor's mansion is entering a critical stage.

The saga of the missing gun revealed a series of mishaps and that Valdez wasn't sure about where the weapon was, though she said last week she followed department protocol for returning property.

"After a previous audit failed to locate the weapon, current Interim Dallas County Sheriff Marian Brown ordered another inventory be completed on the Sheriff's Property Room yesterday," the news release said. "After a thorough inventory of every weapon, the missing Berretta 9mm handgun was found."

The release also says that the gun was turned in to the property room on Jan. 2, but "was not entered into the inventory at the time," the release said.

Brown, who Valdez backed to replace her as sheriff, has apologized to the Democratic nominee for governor.

"Former Sheriff Valdez has been notified and advised that the gun has been recovered," the news release said. "Sheriff Brown and the Sheriff's Department offer their sincere apologies to former Sheriff Lupe Valdez for any distress and hardship that was created as a result of the Department's mistake. The Sheriff's Department is in the process of reviewing how this oversight occurred and will be taking steps to implement measures to insure this type of incident does not occur again."

Lost in plain sight

Sheriff's Department spokesman Raul Reyna said Valdez was contacted shortly after she left the department and told the gun was missing from inventory. However, Valdez was soon in the heat of her primary campaign for governor against Houston investor Andrew White.

"Valdez was in the middle of her runoff election so the decision was made to wait until after the runoff election to re-contact her about the firearm," Reyna said. "After the runoff election, former Sheriff Valdez was again contacted and informed that the weapon had not been located."

Reyna said Valdez wasn't sure where the weapon had been placed.

"Valdez informed the Sheriff's Department she would check her storage facility to insure it wasn't in her belongings," Reyna said in an email. "In the meantime, the Sheriff's Department continued searching for the weapon and a report was generated listing the weapon ... as lost/stolen. "

A July report was made because the weapon was missing, and there was concern that it could fall into the wrong hands and be used in a crime.

But during the months the gun was missing, it was actually in the property room, which had been part of the original audit to find the weapon.

Reyna said in an email that Valdez's gun wasn't properly logged into the property room when she returned it to the department.

"They did look in the property room," Reyna wrote. "The investigation revealed that the property custodian was out on leave at the time former Sheriff Valdez returned the weapon and a different person checked in the weapon. The weapon, however, was not placed and entered into the inventory as it should have been, thus creating the situation of the missing weapon."

Reyna said the department would evaluate the situation to determine if any disciplinary action is needed.

Considerable embarrassment

The episode caused considerable embarrassment for Valdez, with incumbent Republican Gov. Greg Abbott criticizing her via social media. His consultant, Dave Carney, compared Valdez to the fictional, bumbling sheriff's deputy Barney Fife.

Valdez said Tuesday that Abbott was using the investigation into the missing gun to distract voters from the need for policies to curb gun violence.

"As a law enforcement officer, I made a commitment to keep the public safe and will continue to do so," she said. "My opponent considered this a slam dunk, thinking this would distract from his unwillingness to keep our communities safe from gun violence, but I will not be strong-armed from keeping him accountable for his failures or be silenced on the need for gun reform."

The Abbott campaign continued its criticism of Valdez, even though the Dallas County Sheriff's Department took responsibility for the missing gun.

"The mismanagement during Lupe Valdez's tenure at the sheriff's department boggles the mind," said Abbott campaign spokesman Alejandro Trevino. "After 12 years of failed leadership at the Dallas County Sheriff's Department, this latest fiasco highlights her irresponsible management skills. For Texans to put their trust behind Lupe Valdez, a much higher standard should be demanded."

Valdez thanked Brown for finding the missing gun and reiterated that she had followed procedures. Last week Valdez confirmed that the gun had been misplaced and took responsibility for it, though on Tuesday Brown cleared her of any blame.

"This incident further illustrates the importance of gun owner accountability and firearms safety. Thank you Sheriff Brown for your leadership and diligence in resolving this issue," she wrote in a prepared statement. "As I have previously stated, I have been a responsible gun owner for over 40 years. Throughout my law enforcement and military career I have always followed protocol when returning issued property."