A Valdosta man is being held in an Indian prison after New Delhi airport officials discovered rounds of ammunition in his luggage from a past hunting trip.

Jeff Worn has been in India for the past three weeks representing South Georgia Pecan, according to family and area officials. Worn was preparing to leave for a meeting with Gov. Nathan Deal in Turkey Friday, when New Delhi airport officials discovered 23 rounds of ammunition in a pocket of a large duffel bag.

An avid outdoorsman and hunter, Worn was not aware that he left the ammunition in the multi-pocketed duffel bag during a past hunting trip, his mother, Janice Worn of Valdosta, said Sunday. The ammunition remained undetected during other airport stops until New Delhi.

“He packed for a three-week trip. It’s a huge duffel bag. … He had no idea that he left that in there,” Janice Worn said.

Indian authorities took Worn into custody, holding him in an airport jail until Sunday morning. At approximately 5 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time Sunday, Worn had his first court hearing and then was sent to an Indian prison, Janice Worn said. He is scheduled for another hearing this morning.

Janice Worn said the embassy has provided little help in aiding her son.

Several Lowndes County and statewide officials have worked to free Jeff Worn during the past few days. Lowndes County Sheriff Chris Prine wrote a letter of recommendation and ran a background check to show Worn has no criminal record.

State Rep. Amy Carter has worked the phones throughout the weekend, contacting the governor and other state officials. She said an effort has been underway to reach Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed who could possibly enlist President Barack Obama’s help in Worn’s case.

Meanwhile, area people have reached out to friends in India; one such friend arrived at Worn’s Sunday hearing, providing him with coupons for food and water. Worn’s girlfriend is a missionary in India. His Indian business contacts may also be able to help him.

With South Georgia Pecan, Worn has traveled to India previously to expand the pecan market there. A July 2011 Georgia Public Broadcasting story quoted Worn as saying of the Indian market, “If somebody tried to bring pecan curry over here (the U.S.),  how do you think it’s going to go over? Probably not very well. So, you’ve got be accustomed to their environment. And we were cooking pecans with rice and things like this at the (Indian food show) booth, and bell pepper, and kind of like a sauté-type deal. And people really ate it up.”

The Worn family hopes today’s hearing will free Jeff Worn.