84 killed by bad liquor near Mumbai

MUMBAI, India — At least 84 people died after drinking homemade liquor in a poor neighborhood near Mumbai, the deadliest such case in the city in more than a decade, officials said Saturday.

Five people were arrested and eight police officers suspended pending an investigation of how the illicit liquor was allowed to be sold at a neighborhood shack, Police Commissioner Rakesh Maria told reporters.

The deaths occurred in the Laxmi Nagar slum in the suburb of Malad. Officials said all the victims consumed the liquor Wednesday night and apparently suffered methanol poisoning.