Rawang: Police shot dead three men in Persiaran Emerald here today, suspected of involvement in a series of robberies and car thefts. Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department director Datuk Seri Mohd Shuhaily Mohd Zain said the incident occurred around noon when police attempted to detain the suspects, who were in a Toyota Vios in the area. However, they opened fire at the police and fled.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, the police pursued the suspects’ vehicle for approximately 750 meters before all three suspects were fatally shot. Mohd Shuhaily informed reporters at the scene that two of the suspects were Malaysian men aged 40 and 43, while the identity of the third man has yet to be established as no identification documents were found.

The suspects were held responsible for 17 theft cases this year in Perak, Negeri Sembilan, Selangor, Melaka, and Penang, with most incidents involving four-wheel drive vehicles. They were also wanted for robberies. Mohd Shuhaily explained that their modus operandi involved renting vehicles and replacing the original registration plates with fake ones, using these vehicles to carry out criminal activities.

Today, they were found using a rented vehicle with altered registration plates, believed to be planning another crime. Police recovered two pistols, two machetes, a vehicle alarm jammer, five sets of suspected fake registration plates, and a packet of drugs believed to be methamphetamine from the suspects’ vehicle.