Imphal, May 11 2009: After the recent Operation Summer Storm, atleast five non-Manipuris suspected to be Central security personnel in civvies were killed by unidentified gunmen at Keibul Lamjao National Park in Bishnupur district today.

The incident occurred at around noon at the portion of the park located behind Khordak Awang Leikai which is under the jurisdiction of Kumbi PS.

The victims were found with their hands tied from behind.

A team of mediapersons from Imphal who rushed to the spot on hearing about the report could locate four of the bodies that bore deep cut wound lying among the tall grasses of the at around 4 pm.

Not far from the site where the four bodies, three of them together while another separately, were found together, another body that bore bullet marks was also located at around 5.22 pm.

There were also trails of blood stains on the grasses that indicated that some of the injured persons may have escaped.

All the five victims were in civilian cloths but they resembled Army men with short hair and clean shaven.

A team of Bishnupur police led by its SP K Jayanta have retrieved four of the bodies by late evening and kept at the mortuary of RIMS Hospital here for identification.

Locals people informed that seen some non-Manipuris being taken towards the park on foot by known armed persons at around 11 am today.

Not long after that they heard gunshots.

According to information received by the press, the victims were cloth merchants who came to Khordak-Nongmaikhong area for selling garments.

However, when the unidentified armed persons heard about a gun slipping down from one of them, all of they have been escorted.

The killing may be an act of vengeance for the recent Army operation at Keibul Lamjao in which atleast 12 UGs were reportedly killed, the source added.

However the identity of the killers nor of the victims could be established till the time of filing this report.

It may be recalled here that though the Army claimed that 12 cadres of PREPAK were killed in the operation, only 10 bodies have been recovered.

Out of the 10 bodies, identity of two could not be confirmed.

There was also an incident in which in some Army personnel in civvies who came in a Maruti Van were saved by the villagers when they met with an accident at Khuga River in the morning of April 11, the day of launching the operation.

On the same day, mediapersons were stopped from taking photographs of Army troops at Ungamen by some persons in civvies coming in a Maruti car.