Sailor in hot water over weapons find

Sailor in hot water over weapons find

INDONESIA: An Australian sailor arrested after Indonesian police
seized guns and ammunition on his boat will be charged with
illegally possessing firearms -- an offense that carries a
maximum punishment of 20 years in jail, a police spokesman said
on Saturday.

Christopher Packer, 52, was arrested on Friday on his boat off
Bali, said Col. Anthonius Reniban.

Four other foreign sailors on the boat -- a decommissioned
freighter called Lissa -- were also detained, but have since been
released from custody.

Officers acting on a tip-off seized four rifles, a handgun and
more than 2,000 rounds of ammunition from the boat. The weapons
were undeclared and unlicensed, Reniban said.

"He has carried weapons into Indonesian territory. He will be
taken to court."

But Packer's friends and family in Australia said he was an
accomplished sailor and longtime adventurer who was sailing to an
international regatta in Thailand, and was only carrying weapons
to protect himself from pirates.

-- AP