Four imprisoned Guatemalan policemen arrested in connection with the deaths of three politicians from El Salvador have been killed in jail, according to police.
They men were shot dead inside the Boqueron prison, east of Guatemala City. One of the dead officers was head of the Guatemalan National Police organised crime unit.
It has been reported that armed gunmen entered the prison and targeted the policemen after threatening guards. The policemen were reportedly killed in their cells.
The men were arrested on Thursday and taken to the prison after the murders of Eduardo D'Aubuisson, son of El Salvador's late right-wing leader Roberto D'Aubuisson; two other Salvadoran officials; and their driver in or near Guatemala City.
Their charred bodies were later found along a road about 20 miles southeast of city.
Investigators have said they don't know the motive for the murders, but some officials said they suspect the slayings were politically motivated or were linked to the region's powerful gangs and crime groups.
The three slain Salvadoran politicians represented their country at the Central American Parliament, which is based in Guatemala City and has 132 members representing five of the seven Central American nations. They also were members of El Salvador's ruling party, Arena.
D'Aubuisson's late father was embroiled in scandals as the alleged founder of El Salvador's death squads during its civil war from 1980-1992. The death squads were responsible for the kidnap, torture, and murder of tens of thousands of civilians.