Three days after villagers of Tangapalli under Odupa panchayat in Malkangiri district held 16 people posing as Maoists captive, police on Thursday arrested 18 persons for allegedly launching an assault on villagers. A mob of around 40 had attacked the village posing as Maoists late on Monday night. While the villagers caught hold of 16 of them, others had managed to escape. Police on Thursday arrested the 16 attackers held captive by the villagers while the two others who had escaped were apprehended from Mathili.
The arrested were brought to the police station for interrogation to ascertain their identities and links with Maoists. However, no links with Maoists could be established. So, they were arrested on the charge of attacking the villagers, intimidating and looting them. The villagers had detained the self-proclaimed Maoists, including two women, in a school building.