be in the wrong place at the wrong moment

To encounter trouble or misfortune that that was not one's fault but rather was due to unfortunate circumstances, timing, or physical location. There are a lot of conspiracy theories about why he was targeted, but I think he was just in the wrong place at the wrong moment. I happened to be walking through right when the protest started. Talk about being in the wrong place at the wrong moment. A: "Gordon was in a car accident?" B: "Yeah, he just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong moment—the other person had fallen asleep at the wheel."