Bhubaneswar, July 15 Nine people have been arrested for hacking to death six members of a family for suspected sorcery in Odisha\'s tribal dominated Keonjhar district, said police on Wednesday.

Crime Branch Additional Director General B.K. Sharma said nine people, accused in committing the heinous crime at Lahanda village on July 12 night, have been arrested and weapons used in the crime have also been seized.

The incident was an outcome of entrenched superstition when six persons of a family in Lahanda village bore the brunt of the villagers.

While six members, including four children and their parents, died on the spot, two others sustained serious injuries and were admitted to hospital, police said.

According to the National Crime Records Bureau, there were 160 cases of murders linked to witch hunts in 2013.

9 held in Odisha for killing six for suspected sorcery