Trawling through the water with a magnet, schoolboy James Cork had only expected a modest haul of scrap metal.

But, last week, the 16-year-old from Somerset stumbled across a rather more shocking discovery – a hidden cache of 40 deadly weapons.

The arsenal of rusting and grubby guns dating back to the Second World War included a Browning .50 machine gun, which could take down a helicopter, and an M16 assault rifle.

An expert has suggested the guns may have belonged to the IRA and could have been dumped when they were meant to be declaring their arms in 2001.

A teenage metal detector discovered 40 weapons dumped in the Somerset Levels when trawling the water with a magnet. Some of the guns may have belonged to members of the IRA, experts said

The teenager from Street had taken up the unusual hobby of magnet fishing six months ago, but had only managed to salvage the odd bit of scrap metal.

But while combing Greylake on the Somerset Levels with a rope and a strong magnet tied to the end, he and a friend suddenly came across a 40-strong haul of terrifying weapons.

WHY SOMERSET COULD HAVE BEEN CHOSEN FOR AN IRA ARMS CACHE In the 1980s weapons and explosives were smuggled across the Irish Sea by the IRA in ferries or small boats. Members chose the most remote areas on England, Wales and Scotland to hide them as they planned to take their fight to the mainland. Sources at the time said that they were then stashed in forests and hills across Stirlingshire and in the Uplands of Scotland. Sites in north Wales were also chosen. In England weapons were also dumped in the Midlands and also all along the south coast, making rural Somerset a likely spot for an arms cache. Advertisement

Among them were parts of a Nazi MG 42 light machine gun, which has a 600m killing range, and a Czech SA23 9mm submachine gun.

He told The Sun: ‘I was shocked. I’ve never found anything like this before. There were a few whole weapons, but not many. Some were machine guns, pistols and revolvers. And there was a massive machine gun on a stand.

‘There was a fisherman getting quite angry as I was disturbing the water. But when he saw what I pulled out, he came and helped.’

Though he threw most back into the water, he took one of the guns – thought to be a 1930s Smith & Wesson .38 - home to play with.

However when his mum Katherine saw him playing with the gun, she called 999 and an armed police arrived minutes later.

The 37-year-old said: ‘Nothing illegal is allowed in the house.

‘But I didn’t think I’d be dealing with one of my kids holding a gun. I said, “Bring it downstairs, leave it in the kitchen and don’t touch it”.’

James Cook, 16, said he had 'never found anything like it before'. A fisherman helped the teenager pull the haul of weapons out of the water

Among the guns was an M16 Rifle dubbed the Widow Maker (top) by British troops fighting the IRA in Ulster

A handout image of the deadly gun used by IRA troops in the battle for Northern Ireland

Another of the weapons found by the teenager is thought to be a Nazi MG 42 used in Germany in the second half of the Second World War (file image)

Police dredged the river the next day to recover the rest of the weapons.

A spokesman for Avon & Somerset Police said: ‘None of the weapons were complete, and they were extremely rusty and very old. All of the weapon parts have been or are being destroyed.’

An expert suggested that the weapons could have been used by the IRA during The Troubles and may have been dumped when Republicans were meant to be declaring their arms in 2001.

Former SAS sergeant and author Andy McNab, who served in Northern Ireland during 1979, said the weapons could have been used by the IRA during The Troubles.

He said: ‘This must be a terrorist bundle. That’s because there are weapons for various ranges — from close assassination ones to the Browning that could take out a helicopter or Land Rover.

‘A large machine gun barrel means it could be the IRA. Were they included when they declared their arms? Or were they held back in case they didn’t get a deal they wanted?’.