Balasore, Jan. 30: Balasore police today arrested five of 14 persons accused to have murdered four members of a family, including two women, on January 28 at Paganai village, a tribal hamlet in Balasore Sadar limits, 11km from here.

Cops said four persons were killed by the arrested persons as revenge for a murder that took place on October 27, 2016.

The arrested persons were identified as Ramesh Majhi, 31, Sudam Majhi, 27, Jayant Majhi, 58, Upendra Majhi, 43, and Chandan Jena, 20. All the accused persons are residents of Balasore town. Ramesh Majhi, a forest guard, is said to be one of the masterminds of the crime. The cops have seized seven choppers, five mobile handsets and a motorcycle from the arrested persons.

District superintendent of police Niti Sekhar said the motive behind the murder was revenge.

Mahesh Majhi was murdered allegedly by his cousin Kharabela and others because of a land dispute on October 27 last year.

The police had arrested four persons for the murder including Kharabela.

"To take revenge for Mahesh's murder, his elder brother Ramesh and others had apparently conspired to kill 40-year-old Prativa, sister of Kharabela and her children," Sekhar said.

The police said on January 27 night, 14 persons had gone to Prativa's house on six motorcycles.

The victims - Prativa Mandal, 40, her daughter Suman, 19, son Subali, 17, and her nephew Bibek Majhi, 13, - were sleeping when they were hacked to death. They had severed Prativa's head and threw it 200 metres away from her house.

The police said that after committing the crime, they had thrown the weapons into a prawn hatchery pond at Nidhi Pada in Chandipur police station limits and fled. The cops found the daggers used in the crime from the pond. They are yet to find the firearm.

Bibek's mother Anita Majhi had lodged an FIR with the Sadar police. A case of murder, suppression of evidence and common intention for murder was registered. The five accused were produced in court today and the cops are looking for other nine accused.