diff --git a/src/core/game_list.cpp b/src/core/game_list.cpp
index 6b4246f54..aa0ccf9a0 100644
--- a/src/core/game_list.cpp
+++ b/src/core/game_list.cpp
@@ -545,7 +545,10 @@ bool GameList::ScanFile(std::string path, std::time_t timestamp, std::unique_loc
 
   Entry entry;
   if (!PopulateEntryFromPath(path, &entry))
+  {
+    lock.lock();
     return false;
+  }
 
   entry.path = std::move(path);
   entry.last_modified_time = timestamp;