Ecclestone (stock image) was arrested and he was taken to a facility at Viracopos airport in Campinas.
(Picture: PA)Bernie Ecclestone has been arrested in Brazil for illegally carrying a gun, police said on Thursday.
At the time the former chief executive of the Formula One Group, 91, was boarding a private plane to Switzerland on Wednesday night, local officers said.
They found an undocumented LW Seecamp .32 gun in Ecclestone's luggage during an X-ray screening, police said in a statement.
Ecclestone was then arrested and he was taken to a facility at Viracopos airport in Campinas.
The Briton acknowledged owning the gun but he said he was unaware it was in his luggage at the time, police said.
He has paid for bail and he was freed to travel to Switzerland.
Ecclestone is married to Brazilian-born Fabiana Ecclestone, an FIA vice-president and member of the World Motor Sport Council.
They attended several events in the South American country in May, including a local Stock Car race in the countryside near Sao Paulo and a meeting with triple world champion Nelson Piquet in Brasilia.
The Standard has reached out to Ecclestone’s representatives for further comment.
