POCOATA, BOLIVIA – MAY, 2026 Brutal case of mob justice took place during the night of May 28-29, 2026, in the Bolivian municipality of Pocoata in the Potosí Department. Angry residents forcibly entered the local police station, where they took three men suspected of stealing a car. They then led them to the town cemetery, where investigators say they burned them alive.
The victims of the lynching were Félix C. P. (28), Eloy C. C. (24), and Riner M. F. (22). All three had previously been detained by police on suspicion of vehicle theft. However, before court proceedings could begin, a crowd of approximately 100 to 200 people gathered outside the police station, breached the building’s security, damaged its equipment, and forcibly took the detained men away.
According to investigators, all three men were assaulted and then burned alive in the cemetery area. Their charred bodies were not found until the following day during a police search. Officers at the scene were unable to stop the enraged crowd.
The Bolivian Prosecutor’s Office has launched an investigation into the multiple homicide and is attempting to identify those responsible for the attack. Authorities also emphasized that although the men were suspected of stealing a car, their guilt was never determined by a court. The case has once again sparked debate over the phenomenon of so-called “vigilante justice,” which has repeatedly occurred in some parts of Bolivia.
