A 25-year-old youth was allegedly beaten to death by a group of people in a village near here suspecting him to be a thief, police said today.
The incident took place yesterday in Sonale village of Bhiwandi taluka in the district when a group of 15-20 persons allegedly assaulted a youth, identified only by first name Babu, as they suspected him to be a thief against the backdrop of few incidents of robbery in the village recently, they said.
Bhiwandi Police Station sub-inspector Vijay Shirsat said the youth was beaten up with sticks and pelted by stones by the group, injuring him severely.
Babu was rushed to a private hospital in Bhiwandi where he succumbed during the treatment, the officer said, adding that the body has been sent for postmortem.
According to police, one of the attackers has been identified.
A case has been registered under IPC Sections 302 (murder), 146 (rioting), 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon) in this regard and hunt was on to nab the accused, he said.