Truck driver arrested with AK-47, grenades in Punjab cross-border smuggling case

An AK-47, nine live cartridges and two hand grenades were allegedly being moved through Amritsar when Punjab Police intercepted a 28-year-old truck driver, busting an alleged cross-border arms and explosives supply network.The accused, identified as Navjot Singh from Cheema in Tarn Taran, was allegedly procuring illegal weapons on the directions of foreign-based smugglers, Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav said on Sunday. Police also impounded the motorcycle he was using to transport the consignment.ACCUSED LINKED TO FOREIGN-BASED SMUGGLERSAccording to preliminary investigation, Navjot Singh was linked to foreign-based smugglers and was involved in procuring illegal weapons, DGP Gaurav Yadav said.Further investigation is underway to uncover the complete network and establish its backward and forward linkages, he added. The arrest comes amid the Punjab Police's ongoing drive to make the state safe and secure, being carried out under the directions of Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann.AK-47, GRENADES RECOVEREDInspector General of Police (IGP), Border Range, Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said special teams of Amritsar Rural Police acted on precise intelligence inputs and launched a targeted operation. The teams intercepted Singh while he was riding a motorcycle. A search led to the recovery of an AK-47 assault rifle, a magazine, nine live cartridges and two live hand grenades.IGP Bhullar said further investigation was being carried out to establish the forward and backward linkages of the network.FIR REGISTERED IN AMRITSARThe operation was conducted under the close supervision of Amritsar Rural SSP Kanwalpreet Singh Chahal, SP (Investigation) Ramandeep Singh, DSP Gurinderpal Singh Nagra and DSP Attari Yadwinder Singh.A case has been registered as FIR No. 425 dated September 30, 2026, at Gharinda Police Station in Amritsar Rural.The accused has been booked under Section 25(8) of the Arms Act and Sections 3, 4 and 5 of the Explosive Substances Act. Further investigation is underway.- Ends