A police report finalised on 3 November 2026 identified an object found in a commercial shipping container at a major Port Moresby wharf in Papua New Guinea as an undetonated 130mm Chinese Type 59 Artillery Projectile containing chemical explosives and a fuse, ABC reported, citing high-level sources. An X-ray machine donated by Australia to the Royal Papua New Guinea Police was used to analyse the 32-kilogram device, and sources said the report went to criminal investigators handling the case.

The same day, the Chinese Embassy in Port Moresby said on social media that a company linked to the incident had conducted an on-site verification and found the object was a shell-shaped wine bottle that "poses no danger at all." The embassy said it was keeping PNG police fully updated and awaiting the official findings of their investigation. Four Chinese nationals arrested after the object was located on the Friday before the report remained in custody in Port Moresby.

PNG Police Commissioner David Manning said officers secured the area after receiving information about the artillery round, allowing police and military explosive disposal experts to examine the device and move it to a secure facility, the ABC reported.