160 Electric Detonators Found Near Bollarum Army Firing Range

Army personnel searching the Madras Regiment military zone in Bollarum following the recent theft of firearms and ammunition from their armoury discovered bundles containing 160 electric detonators near the firing range on Wednesday. Following the recovery in Hyderabad, the local police registered a suo motu case under the provisions of the Explosive Substances Act.

According to the Bollarum police, an alert was received from an Army Subedar late on Wednesday evening. The Subedar informed the authorities that about 160 electric detonators had been discovered packed in bundles inside an abandoned plastic bucket located behind the firing range at the Madras Regiment facility.

Upon receiving the alert from the military personnel, police teams rushed to the location and deployed a bomb disposal squad to assist in the operation. The bomb disposal squad safely handled and helped police seize the entire cache of explosive detonators from the site.

A police officer confirmed that the detonators were uncovered while military personnel were actively scouring the vicinity in search of the missing firearms and ammunition. The officer noted that the abandoned bucket containing the explosives was discovered lying inside a private venture adjacent to the area behind the firing range.

“The detonators were found while Army personnel were scouring the area for stolen firearms and ammunition. We have seized the detonators with the help of a bomb disposal squad. They were found in a private venture. We are trying to find out the source of the detonators,” a Bollarum police officer said.

Investigators have launched an inquiry to determine the exact source and origin of the electric detonators, as well as who brought them to the private venture near the military installation. A case under the Explosive Substances Act has been officially registered at the Bollarum police station in connection with the seizure.

The extensive search operation in the area was triggered by a major armoury heist reported earlier. On August 31, an officer of the Madras Regiment lodged a formal complaint with the Bollarum police, reporting that high-end assault rifles, pistols, and a substantial cache of ammunition had been stolen late on Sunday from the regiment’s armoury in Bollarum.

According to the complaint, the stolen military inventory included four AK-203 assault rifles, one INSAS rifle, seven pistols, a night vision binocular, and over 1,000 rounds of live ammunition. Following the complaint, police registered a burglary case, and a multi-agency investigation was launched to track down the stolen weapons.