Bernie Ecclestone has again had problems with the authorities because of a firearm. At 95 years old, the former Formula 1 boss was detained at Tires Aerodrome, in Cascais, near Lisbon, after arriving from Switzerland on a private jet with a shotgun without the necessary documentation.
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Ecclestone said he was carrying the gun to Portugal to practice clay pigeon shooting. The luggage passed through customs without problems, but a police officer decided to conduct a search: “I had a shotgun that I was bringing from Switzerland to Portugal for clay pigeon shooting,” Ecclestone told the Daily Mail. “It’s as simple as that. I have licensed guns at home there.”
It was during the approach that he realized he did not have the so-called “blue book,” a document required to legally transport the weapon. Ecclestone was held for several hours. “They said they would arrest me, but after what seemed like hours, we resolved the situation, but it was a hassle from start to finish,” he said.
Fabiana Flosi, Ecclestone’s wife, went to Lisbon to try to resolve the situation. “But it seems it can be corrected. Fabi went to Lisbon to deliver the gun, or pay the tax, or whatever is necessary to bring it here.”
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The shotgun had been taken from Switzerland, where Ecclestone owns a ski chalet valued at £23 million.
The former F1 executive had already gone through a similar situation. In May 2022, he was arrested at an airport in Brazil for illegally carrying a weapon when boarding a private plane. At the time, he described the case as a “small and silly incident” and was released after paying bail.
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