The weapons and ammunition that could prove vital to the investigations into the high sea killing of two fishermen were finally seized after a marathon operation by the special investigation team, from the Italian merchant vessel Enrica Lexie, on Saturday.
According to top sources, there were 32 guns on board, stored in a cabin close to the navigation bridge of the vessel. A large quantity of ammunition for the firearms was stacked in a cabin on the fourth deck where the remaining Italian navymen were lodged. The two cabins were sealed by the customs department and the Italian military protection force on Wednesday night.
The search and seizure operation that went on till late into the night was carried out by a 25-member team of police, coast guard, Indian navy, customs and forensic officials, with help from ballistic experts and fingerprint experts.
The examinations, led by Kollam city commissioner Devesh Kumar Behra, Kochi city commissioner M.R. Ajithkumar, and Kollam superintendent of police Sam Christy Daniel, were done in the presence of a 10-member Italian delegation, including two ballistic experts Maj. Flebus Luca and Maj. Fratini Paolo, who were flown in from Rome on Saturday.
The sources on board the ship during the search confirmed that all the weapons were Italian-made. However, the police did not disclose the details or the number of weapons.
According to sources, the team took two hours to examine each weapon on board. After six hours of examinations, the police confirmed that some 25 per cent of process was over.
Mr Ajithkumar said the police seized everything that would be useful for the investigation.
“We have seized several weapons. But, only the examinations at the forensic lab could prove which weapon was used for the killing of the fishermen,” he said, confirming that the Italians co-operated well during the seizure operations.
The weapons would be presented before the Kollam judicial court, where the case is heard, after the tests are held at the Thiruvananthapuram forensic laboratory.
The two arrested Italian navy men, Latorre Massimilliano and Salvatore Girone, currently in police custody, continued to be lodged at the CISF guest house.