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IKEA has apologised after a child fired a gun in a store in America after finding the weapon down the side of a sofa.

The Swedish furniture giant said the safety and security of customers and co-workers was its "top priority" following the incident in Fishers, Indianapolis.

Fishers police department said no one was injured during the shooting around 2pm on Monday (US time).

According to Sergeant Tom Weger the man who dropped the gun was not aware he had left it on the sofa.

Police said he had a permit for the weapon.

"It's important to remember that if you are going to carry a firearm on your person, that you make sure you’re under control of it at all times.

“It's just part of gun ownership, responsible gun ownership," Sergeant Weger told local news station News 8.

He said police are investigating the matter.

An IKEA spokeswoman said: “We take this incident very seriously and we have offered the family of the child involved our sincerest apologies.

“Safety and security of customers and co-workers is the top priority for IKEA. We have processes in place to ensure that the store is safe for customers and co-workers.

“For example, our store team has regular safety walks and audits which happen before, during and after opening hours.

“In addition, IKEA has a no weapon policy in our locations to prevent exactly these types of situations.

“As soon as we were aware of the situation, our co-workers took the action that they were trained to do to ensure the safety of customers. We are cooperating with police as they investigate this incident.”