Woman Is Burnt Alive On Bonfire After Being Accused Of Being A Witch

A 73-year-old woman was doused in petrol and burned alive on top of a bonfire after local people accused her of being a witch, prosecutors said. Prosecutor Hugo Mauricio said that Rosa Villar Jarionca was sentenced to death by the remote Shiringamazu Alto community in the Peruvian Amazon - after people claimed she made them sick through witchcraft. The burning took place last week, but the area is so remote that news did not reach the authorities, Mauricio said.

‘The woman was burned alive because the people accused her of being a witch, ‘ Mauricio said - saying that accusations of witchcraft are common among indigenous communities. A phone video given to prosecutors shows Villar being doused in gasoline while on top of a pile of dry logs and branches, then set on fire with a match. A local community logbook contained details of the decision to burn her - which was in response to a majority vote, and signed by community leaders, Mauricio said.