Imphal, July 6: Two youths, belonging to Assam, have been arrested from Manipur's Senapati district. The duo have been accused by villagers of kidnapping, murdering and "eating the flesh" of six children.

The accused were first caught by the villagers who were on the lookout of a "gang" which has been lifting their children for "consumption" purpose. On Tuesday, the locals detected the two accused and thrashed them before handing over to the police.

Preliminary inquiry has validated the charges levelled by the villagers. The Senapati police said the two of them are part of a six-member gang which came from Assam to abduct and children and eat their meat.

A police officer, while speaking to reporters, said the accused have confessed to have eaten up at least six children after killing them. Four of their aides, the officer said, have escaped. A search operation has been launched to nab them. All police stations in Manipur have been alerted.

The accused are currently in the hospital as the beating inflicted on them by the villagers caused severe injuries. Their identities could not be confirmed due to language barrier, said a police official. Investigators are taking aide of language experts to extract more information from them.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 06, 2018 07:45 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).