KUALA LUMPUR: A 35-year-old policeman was injured on his hand when a man he was chasing in a housing estate in Cheras, took out a pistol and fired at him early yesterday.
Despite being outnumbered five to one, the lone gunman escaped by stopping a passing taxi at gunpoint and driving off during the 6.30am incident.
Cheras OCPD Asst Comm Mohd Noor Masdar said the victim, identified as L/Kpl Noraza Nurdin from the Sg Besi police station, was warded at HUKM for injuries to his fingers.
He said police were looking for the gunman, who is believed to be in his 40s.
The five policemen were on crime prevention rounds in Taman Mulia, Cheras, when they noticed a man behaving suspiciously.
The man suddenly ran off when approached by two policemen who got off from their motorcycle and walked towards him.
One of the policemen immediately gave chase. The victim tripped and fell on the road but as the policeman approached the man, he suddenly whisked out a pistol and fired several shots, which hit the policeman’s right hand.
The gunmen then got up and held up a taxi driver at gunpoint, asked him to move over to the passenger's side and sped off towards Jalan Kuchai Lama.
As he was fleeing, a policeman fired a shot, smashing the taxi's front windscreen.
The gunmen then got off at Jalan Kuchai Lama and fled on foot. The taxi driver, known only as Ah Tai, went to the Salak South police station to lodge a report.
When met, Ah Tai said the gunman ordered him in Cantonese to move over to the passenger's side as he wanted to drive.
Ah Tai said he believed the gunman was injured as there were patches of blood on his own uniform.
