Italians lay down their arms

KOCHI: After a ten-day-long high drama on the controversial Italian vessel Enrica Lexie, the police seized the weapons suspected to have been used by the marines to shoot down two Indian fishermen. A police team led by Kochi City Police Commissioner M R Ajith Kumar carried out the search and seizure operation in the presence of Italian arms experts  here on Saturday.The seized weapons would be produced before the Kollam magistrate’s court on Monday. Police said the weapon used in the firing  was Italian-made. The ship contains more weapons than the police expected. The weapons would be examined by ballistic and forensic experts.  ‘’We started the search and seizure operation at 11 am but till 8 pm we could finish only 25 percent of the examination. This is a complex procedure and requires more time. But we hope it will be finished soon. A team of forensic, ballistic and fingerprint experts is carrying out the examination. The entire  ship will be examined and the process would end only  late in the night. The name of the weapon used for shooting will be revealed only after completing the formalities,”  Ajith Kumar said.Along with the police, representatives from Navy, Coast Guard and Customs were present in the ship at the time of examination. From the Italian side,  there were ten officials under Consulate-General Giampaolo Cutillo. Arms and ammunition experts Major Flebus Luca and Major Fratini Paolo from Carabinieri reached the  ship straight from the airport on Saturday.Police said there were more marines present in the ship than what was revealed earlier. The entire ship will be checked and only the weapons and documents required will be seized.Later, DGP Jacob Punnose reached the IG office and held discussions with Ajith Kumar about the search and seizure operations. He informed Chief Minister Oommen Chandy over telephone about the action.