Panic over nighttime assaults blamed on "grease devils" has struck across rural Sri Lanka, leading to the deaths of at least three people this week, prompting women to stay indoors and men to arm themselves, police and local media said.
Historically, a "grease devil" was a thief who wore only underwear and covered his body in grease to make himself difficult to grab if chased. But lately, the "grease devil" has become a night-time prowler who frightens and attacks women.
Police said at least 30 cases of grease devils have been reported from several districts during the last 6 weeks. At least 47 such men have been arrested recently.
"The story we hear is he comes and bites young women's necks. Despite several complaints, the police have failed to act on that and in fact in two places have released the culprits," a 36-year old airline ticketing agent from the Hill Country district of Matale said, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of upsetting authorities.
Two men whom wary villagers identified as "grease devils" were hacked to death on Wednesday by a mob in the central Sri Lankan village of Kotagala, in a tea-growing area, police said.
A 22-year-old man hunting for a "grease devil" in the jungle died after accidentally stepping on an electric trap set for wild boars, the Tamil-language newspaper Sudar Oli said.
At least 30 incidents have been reported across seven districts from Sri Lanka's east coast and across its tea-growing regions in the central Hill Country. Police have arrested 47 people since last month.
"There is no grease devil as such. It is a human among us with an ulterior motive of stealing or to engage in some illegal activities," police said.