JHELUM, Aug 1: The police have seized explosives, some of them live, from a scrap shop in Jhelum, sources in the district police told Dawn. The live mortars were handed over to the army authorities at the army ammunition depot Kala who defused them.

Inspector Asif Iqbal Bhatti station house officer Jhelum told Dawn that on Tuesday evening one, Khalil, informed the Rescue 15, that a ‘bomb’ was lying at the bank of the Jhelum River. A police team reached there and called the bomb disposal squad from the army to defuse the device.

Later the police were directed to check all the shops located in the vicinity where the scrap was dumped.

During the checking 15 rusty mortars, one anti-tank artillery shell, and a rocket were recovered from the scrap shop.     The Jhelum police carried out thorough search of the scrap shop on Wednesday that resulted in recovery of nine more mortar shells, one handgrenade and one artillery shell.

The police have registered case against the scrap shop owner, Mohammad Iftikhar, and his nephew Muhammad Haroon, and were being quizzed.

According to Inspector Bhatti, Mohammad Iftikhar divulged to the police that he was not aware of the explosives as the scrap had been purchased by his late brother Mohammad Iqbal, the owner of the shop who died a year ago, from the military depot Kala, Jhelum.

Regional Police Officer Nasir Khan Durrani told Dawn that he had requested the Punjab home department to set up a joint investigation team of police and army to probe the matter.

He has directed the police authorities of Jhelum, Attock and Chakwal districts to conduct search operations at scrap shops in their areas.