SUNGAI PETANI, Feb 18 (Bernama) -- Police shot dead six criminals and detained four women in a shoot-out at a house in Kampung Kemunting, Karangan, in Kulim yesterday.
"When the policemen barged into the house and introduced themselves, six men between the age of 20 and 50, fired several shots at them, and in defence, the police fired back and the shots hit the six suspects," he told reporters here today.
He said four women, aged between 21 and 28, who were in the house were detained to assist police investigations.
Syed Ismail said all the suspects killed in the incident were believed to be involved in armed-robbery cases reported in Kedah, Penang, Perak and Selangor, adding that the group's last heist was in Sitiawan, Perak.
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POLICE-SHOOT 2 (LAST) SUNGAI PETANI
The house served as a place for them to smelt the gold loot obtained from their robberies, he added.
He said the identities of the suspects would be revealed after police had notified their families.
However, he said, three of them were from Kulim, one from Selama in Perak, the other had an address in Johor, while another had no personal documents on him.
On the women who were detained, Syed Ismail said they were from Penang and Bandar Baru in Kedah, adding that police were investigating their relations with the six suspects.
He said police searched the house, which was recently built, and found two pistols -- a Smith & Wesson 9mm with seven rounds of ammunition and a .38 revolver with five rounds of ammunition.
Police also seized three luxury cars -- a BMW, a Proton Perdana and a Cherokee four-wheel-drive vehicle -- and several equipments used for gold smelting, he added.
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Police Action Not Based On Race - Mohd Bakri
ALOR SETAR, Feb 18 (Bernama) -- Bukit Aman CID chief Datuk Mohd Bakri Zinin said police have the right to defend itself and quashed rumours that it acted based on skin colour.
He said in crime prevention, police laways acted based on information, the law, professionally, with patience and without racial prejudice.
"Police action in Kedah last night met all the criteria needed," he said defending the killing of six criminals aged 20-50 in a shootout at Lot 157-A, Kampung Kamunting, Karangan, Kulim at 10.10pm last night.
Mohd Bakri said this at a press conference at Kedah police headquarters here on Wednesday to explain the shootings and rumours that police only targeted people from a certain race.
In the operation last night, police also detained four women aged 20-24 and seized two Smith & Wesson 9mm revolvers with seven live bullets, a .38 revolver with five live bullets, a BMW, Proton Perdana and Cherokee jeep, gold smelting and drug processsing equipments.
He warned that police would act against political party leaders and non-governmental organisations (NGO) involved in protecting criminals.
"I hope this issue will not be politicised to fan racial sentiments as it will only disrupt the community.
"Criminals are a creation of the society not the police who are hated for taking action to protect the public."
Mohd Bakri denied that police shot dead an 18 year-old student last night and said action under the Sedition Act would be taken against those found spreading such rumours.
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The Star
Six armed robbers shot dead in Kulim
SUNGAI PETANI: Police shot dead six armed robbers and nabbed four women in a shootout at a house in Kampung Kemunting, Karangan, in Kulim.
They were involved in a series of armed robberies on goldsmith shops in Kedah, Penang, Perak and Selangor, said Kedah police chief Datuk Deputy Comm Syed Ismail Syed Azizan.
He said a Bukit Aman police team had identified themselves to the group outside a house in Kampung Kemunting but were shot at instead at about 11pm.
“We had no choice but to retaliate or else the policemen could have been shot dead. The exchange of gunfire ultimately led to the death of the six men aged between 20 and 50.
“A semi-automatic Smith & Wesson 9mm with seven rounds of ammunition and a .38 Revolver with five were recovered from the bodies.
“Neighbours were unaware of their clandestine activities as the house was covered up with zinc fencing. Equipment used to melt their gold loot were also recovered,” he told a press conference on Wednesday.
DCP Syed Ismail said two of the deceased had criminal records, adding that three vehicles, including a BMW said to have been used in the robberies, were also found at the scene.
The deceased have been identified as contract workers R.Elangovan, 38, and L. S. Santana, 34, contractor R. Pannir, 28, crane driver S. Vadivelan, 29, carpenter S. Gurusamy, 50, and lorry attendant R. Dilip Kumar, 20.
Four women, aged between 21 and 28, said to be the deceased’s girlfriends were also picked up and they have since been remanded by a magistrate’s court to assist in investigations.
Meanwhile, Penang Deputy Chief Minister II Dr P. Ramasamy said he would table an emergency motion in Parliament to discuss the fatal shooting of six suspects.
Dr Ramasamy, who is Batu Kawan MP, said there had been too many cases where police had shot dead suspects without trial.
“What is the point of having courts when the police have a tendency to execute suspects on the spot? Why can’t the police just injure and arrest them, and let the judicial process takes its course? he told newsmen outside the Sultan Abdul Halim hospital mortuary on Wednesday.
Claiming that most of the incidents involved a specific community, Dr Ramasamy said such trend was worrying.
“There had been cases where suspects were shot at point blank or close range,” he said.
Ramasamy said the hospital authorities did not allow even the elected representatives to enter the mortuary.
Makkal Sakthi national coordinator R. S. Thanenthiran called on the police to hold an inquest to ascertain what really transpired.
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