Authorities believe an off-duty Houston police officer was killed Sunday in a gun-cleaning accident at his home.

Officer Donald L. DeBlanc’s family told investigators they returned to their home in southwest Houston about 11 a.m. from an errand and found the officer dead.

Police said there were several weapons and gun-cleaning equipment found around the officer’s body.

There was no indication of a break-in at the home. Homicide detectives are investigating the death.

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"But as with any investigation, we'll have to let it run its course, and we'll be, you know, leaving no stones unturned to determine what happened to our brother," HPD Sgt. Nate McDuell said.

Officer DeBlanc was a 20-year veteran. He was soon to be transferred to the Houston police homicide unit as a detective, officials said.

He shot and killed a suspect in March 2006 who was carrying only a toy gun. Officer DeBlanc graduated from Texas Southern University, where he received master's and law degrees. He was also a law enforcement instructor at the University of Houston-Downtown.

"This is a good lesson to the citizens of Houston, especially the children, no matter how trained you are, now matter how adept you are to dealing with weapons on a daily basis ... accidents can happen," Sgt. Duell said.

He is survived by his wife and several children.