PETALING JAYA (BERNAMA, THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - The police have shot dead the third of about eight people involved in a robbery on Friday (May 18) at a goldsmith shop in a shopping mall in Damansara Jaya near here.

The 22-year-old man was overcome in a gun battle between him and pursuing policemen in Bukit Beruntung, Hulu Selangor, at about 1am on Saturday, said Selangor CID chief SAC Fadzil Ahmat.

The police shot dead two of the robbers and arrested four of them as they were fleeing after the robbery at about 5pm yesterday.

SAC Fadzil said that in the latest incident, policemen from the Selangor Police Serious Crimes Investigation Division (D9) had chased the suspect as he sped off in a Honda Civic car, which eventually skidded and crashed into a tree.

"The suspect came out of the vehicle and opened fire at the policemen. The policemen returned fire and killed the suspect," he said in a statement.

He said the policemen recovered a revolver with three rounds of ammunition and three spent bullet shells and some jewellery, apparently part of the loot.

"The suspect had two past criminal records," he said.

At about 5pm yesterday, six men wearing full-face helmets, three of them armed with pistols, stormed into the goldsmith shop at the mall in Damansara Jaya.

The police shot dead two of the robbers and arrested four of them as they were fleeing after the robbery.

It is believed that more than eight men were involved in the robbery.

Selangor Criminal Investigation Department chief Fadzil Ahmad said that the suspects are part of a crime syndicate, which has been active in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Negeri Sembilan since 2017.

"So far, this group is involved in eight goldsmith robbery cases since last year. We believe there are other suspects who are still at large and we are hunting them," he added.

No police officers were injured from the shootout.

A witness, who wished to remain anonymous, saw the suspects carrying hammers and black-coloured bags into the mall.

"They were walking slowly and once they were inside the mall, they ran towards the goldsmith," he said. "When we heard the sound of breaking glass, we ran towards a storeroom and hid."

Senior Asst Commissioner Fadzil said that the police have not ruled out that the robbery was an inside job, as investigations are ongoing.

He said that the stolen jewellery has been recovered by the police and the goldsmith is trying to ascertain the total value of losses incurred from the incident.

Another witness, tech journalist Sharmila Ganapathy, said she heard the shots coming from a goldsmith shop on the ground floor at about 5.15pm.

Twitter user Ridhwa Huda posted a tweet at 5.27pm, saying she had witnessed an exchange of gunfire between police and unknown persons.

"Oh my God. Police are shooting live in front of us. My heart feels like falling out," she wrote in Malay.

"At Atria mall. Thought people were playing firecrackers. But seems like (a) real pistol," she added. "Wanted to go home, but police warned, 'Don't go out.'"