Conservation Officers called to the Chilliwack Valley recently for a report of target shooters found a collection of weapons being used to hit exploding targets.

Officers seized five handguns, a silencer, a machine pistol, a semi-automatic rifle and boxes of ammunition. Two men were arrested and turned over to RCMP, said Chris Doyle, Deputy Chief of the B.C. Conservation Officer Service.

“This was also during the time when there was a fire ban, and these exploding targets can cause a wildfire,” Doyle said Thursday.

Conservation officers also seized a rifle during their August patrol in the Mission area after it was found loaded in a vehicle. They  also seized a gillnet, 20 salmon and the truck, trailer and boat the men were using.

Two men were arrested for carrying a loaded weapon in a vehicle and Fisheries Act violations.