Former Formula 1 chief Bernie Ecclestone has found himself in trouble with Portuguese authorities after being detained at a private airstrip near Lisbon for allegedly carrying an unlicensed shotgun.
The 95-year-old landed at Tires airstrip in Cascais from Saanen, Switzerland, where he owns a chalet. He said the shotgun was for clay-pigeon shooting, but customs checks escalated when a police officer requested a secondary search of his bag.
Ecclestone described the ordeal as "wall-to-wall aggravation" and confirmed he was held for several hours. His wife, Fabiana Flosi, later went to Lisbon to resolve the issue.
"I had a gun for clay-pigeon shooting," he told the Daily Mail. "We cleared customs without problems. Then a policeman asked to search the bag and wanted to see a 'blue book'. I had the necessary paperwork, but they still detained me."
This is not the first time Ecclestone has faced legal trouble over firearms. In May 2022, he was detained at a Brazilian airport for carrying a firearm on a private flight, an incident he dismissed as a "silly, tiny little incident".
According to Motorsport Week, the current case appears to be nearing a resolution, with Flosi handling the surrender of the gun and related paperwork. The incident adds another chapter to the colourful legal history of the man who transformed F1 into a global spectacle.
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