An angry mob burnt alive three men accused of kidnapping and killing an 11-year-old boy.
Police in Guatemala had already arrested the trio after locals in and around Colotenango reportedly tracked them down and turned them in.
The three men are believed to have snatched young Freddy Eliseo Mendez Pablo as he walked to school on August 11.
They allegedly sent a photo of the minor held by one of his captors wielding a shotgun to his family.
They demanded a ransom payment of £10,900 for his release.
His parents reportedly managed to raise and deliver half the amount, but it was not enough for the kidnappers.
They allegedly killed the boy and dumped him in a 10-foot-deep septic tank, where his body was later found.
His murder caused uproar and prompted locals from in and around Colotenango to identify and catch the suspects.
They handed them over to police, but as officers went to take them to court on August 22, an angry mob intercepted them.
The mob, reportedly comprised of some 6,000 people, beat the men before dousing them with petrol and setting them on fire.
Angry locals also went to the home of one of the alleged kidnappers and set it alight.
Police could do nothing to save the men, who burnt to death and whose bodies were reportedly left unrecognisable.
They were named in reports as Selvin Perez Morales, Samuel Domingo Godinez and Ovidio Mendez Gabriel.
Two were 24 years old and one was aged 38, according to reports.
At the time of reporting, officers had not yet been able to arrest any of the lynch mob, as their work was being hampered by angry locals.
Guatemala had a homicide rate of 16.6 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2021.
It comes after a drunk reveller shot a DJ dead after he refused his song request.
Horrifying accounts have emerged of a shooting in Guatemala which left a 35-year-old DJ and teacher Edwin Villafuerte dead.
The tragic shooting of a loved DJ known as DJ Pollito took place during a traditional Guatemalan festival on May 16, in honour of Saint Isidore the Labourer in the village of San Isidro.
According to local media, the murderer requested a song from the DJ, who told him the celebrations were over.
Edwin then explained he had to pack away his equipment, and so the man walked away.
But the man then returned and waited for him outside the room, apparently angry at not having his song request played, without saying a word shot him at close range with multiple bullets.
The 35-year-old DJ was also a primary school teacher and described as "much loved" by those who knew him.
