Amazon villagers nearly killed two motorcycle thieves by tying them to a tree swarming with venomous ants, reports Motor Cycle Monthly‘s news hound, Bob Pickett.

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The two men – aged 18 and 19 – were held in the Bolivian village of Ayopaya for nearly three days until relatives paid £2,200 as compensation for the three stolen motorcycles.

The ants – pseudomyrmex triplarinus – carry venom that has anti-inflammatory properties and is used as a traditional cure for arthritis. But in the vast quantities that the two thieves were exposed to, the effects are not beneficial. One man is in intensive care while the other required dialysis for kidney failure.

Image: Steve Jurvetson

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Tony Carter

Tony has been riding motorcycles for over 35 years and he's been a motorcycle writer for over 25 of those. He's ridden almost every motorcycle you can think of at most places around the world and he's partial to some racing, too. A Taurus, Tony doesn't believe in horoscopes (but then that's exactly what a Taurus would say!) but he does believe in Mandalorians and their right to earn a living.