12 killed, house set afire in Russia

MOSCOW - A horrific crime has been reported in Russia in which 12 people, including four children, were murdered and their house set on fire.

The incident occurred in Kushchevskaya village in Krasnodar region, Xinhua reported citing Interfax news agency.

According to officials, 10 people were stabbed to death, one child was strangled and another child died from suffocation caused by smoke after the two-storey house was set on fire from three corners.

The victims’ bodies were found after the blaze was contained in the house owned by a farmer and his family, a law enforcement official said.

Investigators said the criminals set the house ablaze while several of their victims were still alive.