The Papua Customary Council, which represents tribal interests in the Indonesian province of Papua, says some 500 Indonesian police burnt down 30 houses and killed 32 pigs at Tingginere village on Sunday.

The wave of destruction began after police shot dead a local man during a clash with an armed group outside the village two days earlier.

Police deny burning any homes or killing any farm animals but admit searching the village, in central Papua, for weapons stolen from a police post on Thursday.

Police spokesman Senior Commissioner Agus Riyanto says the clash erupted when the armed group stopped a police patrol from entering the village.

They were also investigating whether the men were members of the Free Papua Movement, a poorly-armed separatist group.