A young burglar has village security guards to thank for saving his skin on Tuesday after a failed home invasion in the capital’s Meanchey district.

Police said villagers, fed up with a rash of burglaries, slapped and punched the 24-year-old thief before moving on to knees and elbows.

Worried the man would be killed, guards stepped in and spirited him away. Some villagers followed all the way to the police station hoping to administer more punishment, but cooler heads ultimately, if belatedly, prevailed. Koh Santepheap