23 rifles seized from 3 passengers at Madurai airport

Madurai: Twenty three rifles used for shooting events were seized from three passengers who arrived at the airport here from Dubai, customs officials said on Wednesday.

The trio, carrying the rifles worth Rs 17.1 lakh in their luggage, landed two days ago.

The passengers from Kerala claimed that they had come to take part in a shooting competition in the country.

However, they did not possess any documents permitting them to carry the rifles, they said.

They had also claimed that they registered with the National Rifle Association for participating in the event.

During verification, customs sleuths found that the passengers had not registered with any of the associations, following which they seized the rifles and detained the trio.

Further investigation is on, they added.