Guatemalan Villagers Hang Woman, Beat and Burn Two Others
Pastor Dale Morgan
Guatemalan Villagers Hang Woman, Beat and Burn Two Others*
The Associated Press
Saturday, June 16, 2007; 10:12 PM
GUATEMALA CITY -- Guatemalan villagers killed a woman and attacked two
others after accusing them of kidnapping a 9-year-old girl who was later
found dead, officials said Saturday.
Edgar Gonzalez, an official with the local fire department, said the
woman was killed by a mob that hanged her in the main square of the
eastern village of Muyurco on Friday.
Another woman was doused with gasoline and set on fire. She was
hospitalized with severe burns after being rescued by authorities. A
third woman was beaten and later taken to a local jail.
The corpse of the 9-year-old girl was found Friday. The jailed woman and
the hospitalized woman were being investigated for possible involvement
in the killing, authorities said.
Local radio reports said the women were thought by villagers to have
acted as go-betweens for adoption agencies looking for babies. But
authorities said they did not know why they were targeted in response to
the girl's killing and were investigating any evidence linking them to
the crime.
Crowds frequently take justice into their own hands in remote parts of
Guatemala, where legal authorities are often viewed as ineffective or
corrupt. Between 1996 and 2005, 350 people died in mob attacks in
Guatemala.