'British' man 'lynched in Ecuador' after being dragged out of police station and 'burned alive'

A British man allegedly accused of murder was dragged out of a police station and burned alive by a group of so-called vigilantes, according to local reports.

He is said to have faced a brutal death at the hands of a baying mob in Ecuador in wake of his arrest in connection with a fatal shooting on Sunday (20 April).

The unnamed man - who has been described as 'British' and 'English' by local media - was reportedly taken into custody on suspicion of murdering another bloke.

But six hours after his arrest, a gang of locals are said to have stormed the police station where he was being held, as they were supposedly seeking their own kind of justice.

The unrest followed a suspected shooting (Cutaveno TV)

Reports alleged that the Brit was dragged out of the building in front of cops and taken to the Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve.

Located in Ecuador’s Amazon region, it is the second largest reserve across all of Ecuador, which contains 56 national parks and protected areas.

It is claimed that the man was then horrifically set on fire, resulting in unsurvivable injuries.

A local TV station which reported on the two shocking deaths explained: "In the early hours of Sunday, April 20, in the parish of Playas de Cuyabeno, at the closure of an event that took place for the anniversary of the Kichwa community, an incident occurred where as a result two people died.

"Those two people were a community member from the area and another person of British nationality who died due to the severity of his burns."

According to Ecuadorian newspaper Extra, police officers decided not to intervene in the attack.

The man was taken into custody on suspicion of murder before being killed, reports claim (Getty Stock Image)

The publication claimed that cops feared being dragged into it themselves when the mob burst into the police station.

The British man's body is said to have only been returned by the group at around 6.00am local time yesterday.

Officers had also struggled to reach the remote area where the mob had taken him due to the difficultly of accessing it, as local newspaper Ecuavisa explained that Playas del Cuyabeno is usually accessed by river.

Police in the region have not yet issued a statement on the murder.

It is unknown if any arrests have taken place at this point in time.

Serious crimes such as murder are punished harshly in Ecuador and those found guilty usually end up spending decades behind bars.

The government launched a crackdown on cartels and organised crime groups two years ago, resulting in thousands of arrests.

LADbible has contacted the UK Foreign Office for comment.