NCJ Number
203509
Journal
Journal of Forensic Sciences Volume: 48 Issue: 6 Dated: November 2003 Pages: 1322-1324
Date Published
November 2003
Length
3 pages
Annotation
This article discusses the unique design features, electrical circuit, and the operation system of battery-operated firearms found in India.
Abstract
Some homemade, battery-operated, multi-barreled muzzle-loading guns used by terrorists in a recent case were submitted for examination. These firearms were found to be rather uncommon guns not reported earlier in the literature. The eight submitted guns were all similar in their construction and design features. Each gun had eight cylindrical barrels made of iron pipes arranged in two columns of four rows. The barrels were welded together and in turn enclosed in a welded iron case. The firing mechanisms were found to be by electrical (battery) and not by mechanical means. The general layout of the electrical circuit showed positive and negative terminals of the battery connected through an “on-off” switch and a common negative terminal to an indicator lamp. All the barrels of two of these guns and most of the barrels in the other six guns were found to be loaded from the muzzle end. It was apparent that guns had been loaded with a mixture of double-based smokeless powder and black powder as propellant. The guns were found highly unsafe for firing. No attempt was made to carry out actual test-firing experiments. All the barrels in each of the guns can be discharged one after the other in quick succession by selecting the desired barrel with the rotary switch and then pressing the buzzer switch. The guns were found to function almost like a repeater. The general design features suggested that the guns could be reloaded for future use after successful firing. Homemade muzzle-loading shotguns with percussion lock are encountered quite frequently in criminal cases in parts of India. 4 figures, 7 references