Punjab Police have successfully dismantled an international arms smuggling ring with links to the Philippines and the UAE, seizing illegal weapons intended for criminal activities and launching a full investigation.
The Punjab Police has busted an arms supply module with alleged links to handlers based in the Philippines and the UAE and arrested a man, officials said on Sunday.
The police also detained a juvenile and recovered five country-made 7.65 mm pistols from their possession, they said, adding that the weapons were later to be used for firing and extortion activities in the region.
The police arrested Ajay Kumar, a resident of Mehrajwala village in Jalandhar district, and detained his accomplice, a 17-year-old juvenile.
Kapurthala Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Gaurav Toora said police teams, acting on reliable information, first arrested Ajay Kumar and recovered one pistol from him.
During further investigation, police detained his juvenile accomplice and recovered four more pistols from his possession, the SSP said.
Preliminary investigation revealed that the accused were acting on the directions of foreign-based handlers residing in the Philippines and the UAE, he said.
The probe also found that they had allegedly procured the illegal weapons from an unidentified person in Madhya Pradesh for about Rs 87,000 and were supplying them to criminal gangs.
A case has been registered under Section 25 of the Arms Act at Sadar Kapurthala police station.
Further investigation is underway to establish the forward and backward links in the case and to identify other persons involved in the network, police added.