Personnel of Nasaka, Burma's border security force, on security deployment on Shwezar Bridge in Maungdaw on the western Burma border, triggered mounting conflict with nearby villagers after publicly assaulting a woman on Tuesday evening.

According to an eye-witness, the conflict started after a shopkeeper intervened when he saw four Nasaka personnel standing outside his shop at the entrance to Shwezar Guna Village assault a woman by grabbing her, while uttering dirty words. The Nasaka officers were standing outside the shop smoking and chewing betel-nut when they accosted the woman leaving the shop.

The shopkeeper, 61-year-old Bhaigya, was dragged from the shop and severely beaten up by the officers, who accused him of disrespecting their authority when he told them to stop the assault against the woman.

"Irritated by what they had witnessed, some of the villagers took swords, wooden rods, and brickbats and approached the scene to attack the Nasaka personnel. The officers then fired four rounds into the air and retreated, arresting the old shopkeeper. No villager dared follow them after they fired their guns," said the witness.

The elderly man is now being detained at the Maungdaw police station, after Nasaka handed him over to the police on charges of looting their guns.

According to the villagers, the woman who was assaulted by the officers is 30-year-old Burkani from the same village, and she is in the sex trade. Nasaka reportedly went to to the village on Wednesday morning to arrest the woman as well.