Monday September 27, 2010
Car thief shot in the thigh
KUALA LUMPUR: A car thief was shot in the thigh during a shootout following a botch car theft in Sri Petaling here. The incident began at 10am yesterday when the thief snatched the keys of a Mercedes Benz from a businessman in front of a hotel. The businessman alerted hotel security guards, who tried to stop the suspect from leaving with the car. The suspect then jumped into a Mitsubishi Storm and a struggle ensued in the vehicle with its owner.
A police patrol team from Brickfields police headquarters spotted the commotion and ordered the suspect to surrender. The suspect got out of the second vehicle and fled on foot but was caught by one of the policemen. A struggle ensued during which the suspect snatched the policeman’s service revolver. The suspect freed himself and fired two shots at the pursing policemen, who returned fire, hitting him in his thighs.
The thief’s friend, 34, staying at the hotel was arrested. Investigations revealed that the two men had been staying at the hotel for two weeks. The thief has a criminal record involving theft while his friend has a record involving eight drug-related cases. The injured thief was taken to Hospital Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia in Cheras for treatment.
