Boy, 5, 'beheaded in front of mum by missing man' in horror home invasion

A five-year-old boy was horrificallybeheaded in front of his mum by a man who ran into their home, reports claim.

Vikas was allegedly killed by suspect Mahesh Mada, 25, who police said grabbed a sharp spade he found lying in the house and attacked him with such ferocity that he severed the boy's neck from his torso. The killing took place in Madhya Pradesh’s Dhar district in India on Friday. The incident has caused tremendous shock across the country.

Sona Bai, the mum of the five-year-old boy, was injured as she desperately tried to save her son, while local people also rushed to try and help after hearing the woman's screams.

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It is understood Mahesh said nothing when he entered the house and just went over to the bed where Vikas was, suddenly attacking him for no reason.

After seeing what had happened, the crowd turned angry and went after Mahesh. He was reportedly tied up and beaten before later dying from his injuries on his way to hospital. Police have now said Mahesh had been missing from his home for almost four days.

Police Superintendent Mayank Awasthi confirmed the death of the accused and said a judicial inquiry has been launched to determine the cause.

"The actual situation will become clear after the post-mortem report is released. Whether the accused died due to beatings or other causes, preliminary investigations have revealed that the accused is mentally unstable," Supt Awasthi said in a statement.

"Police investigations revealed that they had no acquaintance or grudge against the murderer. The police are conducting a detailed investigation.

"The accused used a sharp-edge weapon lying in the house and attacked the child without any reason, killing him. He had been mentally disturbed for some time. He was immediately arrested."

The police official also said nobody, including the victim's family, had noticed Mahesh wandering in the village ahead of the attack. "He is a resident of another district and the family members were searching for him," he said.

"Wherever he went, he did some such acts which made them doubt his mental condition as well. We got him hospitalised and his treatment was ongoing before he succumbed to his injuries."