Associated Press

GUATEMALA CITY, July 17 -- A mob burned eight people to death in a remote region of northern Guatemala, accusing them of a series of highway robberies,
police said today.

The violence occurred in the town of Secoyala, about 250 miles north of the capital, Guatemala City, police spokesman Faustino Sanchez said.

The mob captured a 17-year-old boy at the scene of one of the robberies Sunday and beat him until he provided names of his accomplices, said Ennio Rivera,
Guatemala's police chief.

The mob then captured eight people from nearby villages and burned them to death late Sunday night and early Monday morning, Rivera said.

Police said they have no evidence that the people killed were responsible for the robberies.

                                               © 2001