Dozens of highway robbers suspected to have been involved in a mass murder in Chad have been arrested as they tried to cross the border into the Central African Republic.

The group are thought to be the ones who attacked the villages of Don and Doniate in Goré, Logone-Oriental province on May 8, where 17 people were killed, the Public Prosecutor of the region says.

They were arrested with some of the cattle that had been stolen and in possession of weapons.

The raiders had arrived at the villages, some of them riding horses and brandishing firearms.

They killed 17 people including an infant. The perpetrators also set huts ablaze, seized oxen and left several persons wounded.

The Governor of Logone Oriental Province, said eight motorcycles and a hundred cattles stolen that night were found in possession of the group moving toward the border. They were immediately returned to their owners. Some cattle are still missing.

The majority of those who perpetrated the act were Chadians. They were also behind several other attacks in the region, government spokesperson, Aziz Mahamat Saleh said on May 19. 

“These attacks have resulted in dozens of deaths in Nya Pendé and the Lam Mountains”, he revealed.

The Movements and Associations of Lay Christians of the Catholic Church of Chad have sent aid to the people that were killed in the attack and their families. 

In a declaration made on Thursday, the group led by its president Marius Ngomibé, announced they will be organising special services to mourn for the victims. 

A special collection is also earmarked to help care for those wounded and offer food assistance to the displaced.