Sofia - Bulgaria was in shock Thursday over a macabre family murder in the south of the country which left two children dead and five others seriously injured.

The 29-year old man, apparently distraught by feuding with his in- laws, killed and decapitated his two sons, aged five and eight, in a street in the village of Osikovo on Wednesday night.

He then went on to the family home, doused it with gasoline and set it on fire. His wife, her parents and two other relatives sustained life-threatening injuries in the blaze, and were being treated in a Sofia hospital, the interior ministry said.

The killer, presumably armed and considered extremely dangerous, fled and was still at large despite a massive police search. (dpa)