Australian police arrest man they thought was armed with an AK-47, but it turned out to be something else entirely

A 50-year-old man in Australia who police say sparked a major police operation in Sydney's northwest has been arrested after the AK-47 he was allegedly carrying turned out to be a marijuana device.

According to police, a large-scale search was launched after the man was seen carrying what was believed to be a dangerous firearm on a main road in Rouse Hill on Wednesday night, the Telegraph reports.

Footage from security cameras in the area led officers to a car parked at a nearby church, in which they found a water pipe said to be in the shape of an AK-47 assault rifle.

Authorities located the man nearby where he was arrested and taken to Castle Hill Police Station.

The Australian will appear in court soon.

New South Wales drug laws state that it is an offense to "sell, supply or advertise a pipe" (a device for consuming marijuana) whether or not it is used to administer a prohibited drug. /Telegraph/