SINGAPORE police contacted its Danish counterparts on Thursday to find out more about the two men - a Singaporean tourist and a former citizen - who were shot pointblank in a restaurant in Copenhagen on Monday evening.

The request comes amid rumours that the 61-year-old former citizen who owns the restaurant, known as Mr Roland Tan, was once sought by the Singapore police in connection with a killing that happened here in the 1960s.

When contacted, the police said in a statement on Thursday that it had 'sent out a request to the Danish Police Force seeking more information on the two persons involved'.

In Denmark, Danish media reporting on the sensational shooting has described Mr Tan as the owner of the popular Bali Restaurant where the shooting happened, but they also hinted at his vast underworld connections.

The media there called him the 'most powerful Chinese businessman in Denmark' who was given the nickname of 'Mr Big'. However, Mr Tan, a Danish resident for over 20 years, had not been convicted of crimes there, according to Danish police.

Mr Tan and the Singaporean tourist, an unnamed 53-year-old man, are still in hospital, said Danish police.

The gunman, allegedly a 47-year-old Vietnamese man, is still on the run.

Singapore's Foreign Affairs Ministry on Thursday said it was continung 'to monitor the condition' of the injured Singaporean and was in close touch with the hospital and the man's relatives.