60-year-old Woman Stripped, Tied To Tree Over Suspicion Of Being A Witch

A 60-year-old Indian woman accused a trio of stripping her and tying her to a tree after locals suspected her of being a witch.

The incident took place in a village located in the Indian state of Jharkhand, police said Thursday. Residents in the woman's village branded her as a witch, leading to her being stripped and tied to a tree as part of the so-called witch-hunting led by a group of people.

The woman told the police she was set free only after she promised to pay them roughly $254 (Rs 21,000), according to The Times of India.

The woman said she paid the sum of money following her release.

It was nearly three weeks after the incident when the woman finally went to the police and filed a complaint against the three people involved.

Police said the victim and the accused are neighbors and had an "internal dispute."

"As per the statement of the victim, the incident took place 20 days back," a police officer reportedly told PTI, according to the outlet.

The officer noted that local leaders in the village "settled" the matter earlier when the incident took place. "However, she lodged an FIR against three people on Wednesday," the cop added.

He also confirmed that roughly $254 was taken from the 60-year-old victim.

Cops are on the lookout for the three accused individuals, who managed to escape from the village, according to ABP Live. Villagers were questioned as part of the investigation.

"We are investigating the matter and interrogating some villagers," the officer confirmed. "A section of the villagers said the accused and the victims are neighbors and they had an internal dispute."

An unrelated incident, which also took place in the Indian state of Jharkhand, was reported last month after four members of the same family were tortured with a hot iron rod and forced to eat human excreta after being suspected of practicing witchcraft. A police officer said the villagers branded them as witches and thrashed them before forcing them to consume the feces from a bottle. They were rescued and taken to the hospital after being found with burn marks.