Villagers in Bihar’s Begusarai district on Friday lynched three men for allegedly attempting to abduct a schoolgirl, The Indian Express reported. The police said some villagers will be interrogated later.

“We have taken custody of the bodies and sent them for autopsy,” said Manjhaul village Deputy Superintendent of Police Surajdeo Kumar. “We have deployed forces at the village.”

The Begusarai Police said four armed men arrived at a newly-opened government primary school at Narayanipar village around 2 pm, and asked about a girl. Subsequently, hearing commotion inside the school, some women in the vicinity raised an alarm.

Some 20 villagers then chased the accused, overpowered three of them and started beating them with sticks. While one of the accused died on the spot, two died while being taken to hospital, the police said. The accused were identified as Heera Singh, a resident of Rosera town in Samastipur district, and Mukesh Mahto and Bouna Singh, who both lived in a nearby village.