Slovenian police on Thursday disarmed several persons, members of the so-called Stajerska Guard, led by the controversial far-right politician Andrej Sisko, who in recent weeks had been patrolling parts of the Slovenian border with Croatia on weekends, looking for illegal migrants.

The POP TV broadcaster said the members of the Stajerska Guard were disarmed on Saturday morning when they gathered in a hunting lodge near the village of Pobocje.

The news was also confirmed by Anton Stubljar of the Novo Mesto police station, in charge of that section of the border.

“The police spotted an armed group of people wearing camouflage uniforms. They checked the identity of 41 persons and seized weapons from seven. (The guard members) claim the weapons are not real ones but replicas so the weapons will be analysed,” said Stubljar.

If the weapons prove to be real, police will file a criminal report.

The Slovenian government wants to restrain illegal activities by the Stajerska Guard by changing some laws to ban the wearing of uniforms resembling military or police uniforms and the possession of weapons in the area close to the border, as such powers belong only to the police and army.

The Slovenian national security council recently held a meeting on the controversial village guards, which some consider to be paramilitary organisations, and the government has also announced the adoption of legislative changes to curb their activities and bring them into line with the law.