LA PAZ ( Motorcycle Thieves burned to death by a Mob of Citizens ) Mob Justice

LA PAZ – A mob burned to death two men accused of trying to steal a motorcycle and attacking its owner near the central Bolivian town of Entre Rios, police said Thursday.

The lynchings occurred on Wednesday in the central province of Cochabamba, the regional police commander, Col. Antonio Arias, told the press.

“The bodies will be difficult to recognize. They are charred and personnel from the Special Anti-Crime Force have already transported them to the morgue in Entre Rios,” said Arias, according to the Web site of the Cochabamba daily Opinion.

The police chief said the lynchings were regrettable and that a “pact of silence” exists among the local population regarding what occurred, but he added that an investigation will be conducted to find those responsible for taking the law into their own hands.

The rural portion of Cochabamba is a zone where outraged townspeople have killed a number of accused criminals in the name of “indigenous and community justice,” although the authorities have said repeatedly that that judicial system does not include committing murder. EFE