A Pennsylvania man who got pulled over by a trooper turned the tables on the situation by confessing one thing.

Matt Powers was driving in Altoona, Pennsylvania, when he was abruptly stopped by a cop.

But Powers was hiding something in his car which would make the officer think twice about pulling him over.

The US Herald reports that once the cop asked to see Powers’ license, registration and insurance, the driver told the officer about what was in his car.

Powers informed the trooper he could not obey the orders since there was a loaded handgun next to his papers.

He explained the tense encounter on a Facebook post:

“He approached the drivers side and asked if I knew why he stopped me and I said I did not. He said my registration expired June 30 of 2016. He asked to see my drivers license, registration, and insurance card. As I kept my hands firmly locked at 10 and 2 on the steering wheel I immediately stated…..

“’For your safety and mine sir I would like to inform you that I am a legally armed citizen. I have a concealed carry permit in my wallet. I don’t want to get my registration and insurance card because I have my pistol in the same compartment as my documents. The pistol is in the small compartment under the cup holder. Please be careful, there is a round in the chamber, the thumb safety is on, and there’s an extra magazine with it.’

“He asked that I keep my hands on the wheel like they were and asked again where my handgun was. He asked where my wallet was with my permit card. I answered and then said…..

“’I would like you to take possession of the handgun. I’ll get out of the truck if you want me to while you get it.’ He told me that would be great and thanked me for my cooperation.

“When I got out of the truck he wouldn’t turn his back to me. I asked if he would like to search me for any other weapons so he knew I wasn’t a threat. He said….

“’If you don’t mind that would be great. Do you have any other firearms or weapons on you or in the truck?’ I replied that I did not.

“The police officer searched me and retrieved my handgun from the compartment with my documents and asked permission to retrieve my drivers license and conceal carry permit from my wallet. I gladly gave him permission to get what he needed. I also gave him permission to search the rest of my truck if he wanted to if he felt it necessary. The officer declined the consent I gave him to search.

“After all the formalities the cop brought my pistol back to me and I said ‘If you want you can just lay everything on the drivers seat and I’ll get it when we’re done.’”

“I thanked him for being as calm as he was especially dealing with someone that had a handgun that was legally carried. The cop thanked me for my cooperation. He asked me to sign the warning ticket and to make sure to get my registration taken care of ASAP.

“I thanked him and the back up officer for their service and told them to be safe, especially nowadays with all the crazy shit that was going on. I told them that was the reason I carry a handgun myself. I shook both of their hands. He handed me my warning and I went on my way.

“After the cold blooded terrorist attack and hate crime in #Dallas and that day learning about #BatonRouge where the blood spilled still fresh in the minds of every American I chose to do what I thought was right.”

Powers’ post went viral with over 296K ‘reactions’ and more than 196K ‘shares’. He says the moral of the story is, “It’s about respect. When you treat people with civility you get treated with civility.”