KUALA LUMPUR • The man who was shot dead at a busy intersection in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday had just bought a new car after suspecting that he was being followed, Bernama news agency reported his friend as saying.
The friend, who refused to be named, said the victim previously drove a Toyota Camry.
"He bought a new Honda Accord just two weeks ago," the man said, telling Bernama yesterday that the victim was a money changer.
Police said on Wednesday that the victim, Mr V. Kandasamy, 43, was a moneylender and had a record of arrest in 2014.
Police said yesterday that no arrests have been made in the case, which has shocked Malaysians due to the brazen manner in which two men pumped 16 bullets into the victim in front of a mall in broad daylight.
A video of the incident showed the two gunmen riding pillion on two motorcycles trailing Mr Kandasamy's car before they dismounted and began shooting at their victim.
The killing was the latest in a series of gangland-style shootings in Malaysia by men on motorcycles. The police have formed a special task force to look into the street murders.
Malaysian police chief Khalid Abu Bakar told reporters yesterday that police are hunting for the gunmen, The Star newspaper reported.
"They cannot run. We will use all our resources to ensure they are behind bars," he said after attending an event.
Asked whether hired killers were becoming a trend in the country, Tan Sri Khalid said this was not so. "However, I do not deny that we have these cases," he said.
He said the street killings were not random shootings. "All these cases had a reason behind the shootings, including the latest shooting," he said.
Earlier this month, a 32-year-old female real estate agent, Datin Wong Siu Ling, was shot to death in her multi-purpose vehicle in Kuala Lumpur by a gunman riding pillion on a motorcycle.
Her eight-year-old daughter was also shot but survived.
Police have arrested several suspects in the July 6 case. Last week, they arrested a businessman who had borrowed RM13
million (S$4.3 million) from Ms Wong for a business venture that failed. Police said the businessman had ordered her
murder because he could not repay the debt.
On June 29, a 40-year-old businessman survived after being shot six times in his car by individuals on motorcycles on the Kuala Lumpur-Seremban highway.
And in Sarawak, land rights activist Bill Kayong, 43, was shot dead on June 21 while he was in his car at a traffic light junction in Miri.
All the incidents happened in broad daylight and involved men on motorcycles.
