KUALA LUMPUR (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - Five men were shot dead in a firefight with cops and another arrested following a jewellery store heist at a hypermarket in Kuchai Lama on Tuesday afternoon (Nov 20). A policeman was also injured in the incident.

A team from Selangor CID was responding to a call when they ran into six suspected robbers who had just come out of the jewellery store.

A shootout erupted immediately and four out of the six suspects were shot dead, with another injured and later arrested.

A policeman was also shot in the knee in the shootout.

City police chief Mazlan Lazim said that the sixth gang member, who was the suspected getaway driver, heard the gunshots and sped off.

"A high-speed pursuit took place. We managed to catch up to him about 400m away from the mall where another shootout resulted in his death."

"Luckily, we were able to stop them before they got away with the loot. No members of the public were hurt," he said during a press conference at the scene on Tuesday.

Police have seized two firearms, an axe, a machete and two cars, and are in the process of identifying the suspected robbers.

The injured policeman has been sent to the University Malaya Medical Centre for treatment.

"There have been a few robberies lately and we have been stepping up our operations to crack down on them."

"This mall has been robbed before so we have been watching it closely," he said.