Authorities at Delhi airport on Wednesday seized 45 handguns from a couple who tried to smuggle the weapons into India.
Jagjeet Singh, 41, and Jaswinder Kaur, 31, both Indian, were arrested by customs officials at the Indira Gandhi International Airport after the weapons were found in two trolley bags.
The couple had arrived from Ho Chi Minh city, Vietnam, along with their infant daughter.
The guns were of assorted brands and valued at 2.25 million rupees ($28,000), Delhi Customs said.
While ballistic reports to ascertain if the guns are real are pending, the elite counter-terrorism unit examined the guns and confirmed the weapons were fully-functional and could be used with .22 calibre bullets, customs officials said.
A preliminary investigation found that the couple were handed the bag by Mr Singh’s brother who had landed from Paris the same day.
The brother had then “slipped out of the airport”, the officials said.
The couple then removed and destroyed the tags of both the bags, the officials said.
During questioning, the couple claimed they were told it was legal to procure handguns from abroad and sell them in India.
They had smuggled 25 guns worth 1.25 million rupees ($15000) in the past, the officials said.
Gold bars seized at Delhi airport - in pictures
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This passenger who travelled on a Dubai to Delhi flight was found to have smuggled melted gold taped to his bald head. He wore a wig to conceal it. Photo: Delhi Customs -
Customs officers at Delhi airport on April 17 seized 15 gold bars concealed in the socks of a passenger who disembarked a flight from Dubai. The bars weighed 1,747 grams and would be worth more than $100,000, meaning the passenger was avoiding paying thousands of dollars in import tax. Photo: Delhi Customs -
Delhi Customs said a passenger who came off a flight from Dubai was found to have melted down this 443 gram bar of gold into a paste and wrapped it around his legs. Photo: Delhi Customs -
A huge gold chain was confiscated from a passenger who was wearing more than the permitted gold allowance. He was further found to have tried to smuggle several bars through Delhi airport to avoid paying thousands of dollars in import duty. Photo: Delhi Customs -
A customs officer tears open a hidden compartment of a suitcase to find a large amount of undeclared currency in Saudi riyals and UAE dirhams. The passenger, who landed in Delhi on a flight from Dubai, was detained. Photo: Delhi Customs
