Nicole Curtis is proof positive that one small act can turn into something much, much bigger once it hits the rumor mill. The HGTV Rehab Addict star was refurbishing a mansion in Detroit when she left her purse on the seat of her car. She went into the backseat to strap her child into a carseat and her purse was stolen.

Rumors claim Nicole Curtis was carjacked or “almost carjacked,” but sources say that simply isn’t true.

In fact, carjackings have dropped considerably in Detroit in the past couple of years, making the likelihood of Nicole Curtis having gotten carjacked pretty the slim.

Nicole Curtis loves Detroit, and she plans to move her business from Minneapolis to Detroit, where she grew up. She understands she made a mistake in leaving her purse in plain sight on the seat of her car.

Nicole Curtis Detroit Robbery Interview: Nicole Curtis captivates audiences with the true stories of … http://t.co/pBaGk5kjF6 #Detroit

— Detroit News 360 (@DetroitNews360) September 12, 2015

That said, she recently shared some words of wisdom with those conducting every day business within a large city–be it Detroit or any other large city in America.

“Don’t be stupid, don’t be naive. It’s like I used to say…leave your bike in the front yard…it’s gonna get stolen. I’m not excusing what happened to us or blaming myself–I’m simply saying…I know better,” Nicole Curtis admits.

Fortunately no one was hurt, Nicole Curtis wasn’t carjacked, and she’ll likely never make that mistake again.

Maybe–just maybe–someone will learn from reading about Nicole Curtis’s mistake, and won’t make the same mistake themselves.