OAKLAND — A BART employee found an abandoned rifle Thursday morning at MacArthur Station, police said.

The .22-caliber Winchester was found in a soft case under a bench at the station around 8:53 p.m., said BART police Lt. Steve Coontz. The gun was not involved in any crimes.

Officials are treating the gun like any other lost and found item.

“It’s not a crime to carry an unloaded rifle in a bag,” Coontz said. “Somebody left it and, as far as I know, nobody has come forward to claim it.”

BART police are holding onto the rifle until the owner contacts the department to claim it.

Contact Katrina Cameron at 925-945-4782. Follow her at Twitter.com/KatCameron91.