Three persons were arrested by Ratnagiri police near Arcot town in Ranipet on Sunday for possession of country-made explosives.

Police said the arrested persons were identified as K. Prabhakaran, 29, S. Karthik, 30, and V. Sudhakar, 26. They are residents of Amirthi village at the foothills of Jawadhu Hills in Vellore.

Initial inquiry revealed that during a routine vehicle check, a police team stopped Prabhakaran, who was riding a two-wheeler with two others. Police said that the trio sounded evasive on their purpose of travel and were also unable to produce valid documents for the vehicle. The team found 33 country-made explosives in their bag.

Police seized the explosives and the two-wheeler. The trio told police that the explosives were meant to hunt small wild animals near forest areas, and also to prevent wild boars from damaging crops. A case was registered and further probe is under way.

Published – January 19, 2026 12:33 am IST